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OCT  2  2 1986 

OCT  1  3 1988 
JUN  18199 


L161— O-1096 


«n««"w 


ttJ.WttlUWW 


College  of  Hampden  Sidney 

Dictionary  of  Biography 
1776-1825 


BV 


A.  J.  MORRISON 


JUL    >  Lm«» 

7    1922 


PUBLISHED  BY 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY  COLLEGE 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY,  VA. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign 


http://archive.org/details/collegeofhampdenOOmorr 


02 


A  petition  of  snnftrg  inhabitants  of  ttje  runntg  of 
flrinre  lEfttuarb,  tutjose  names  are  tljereunin 
subscribed,  mas  presented  to  the  ifouse  an&  rea&: 
setting  fiDcrtifn  ttjat  tljey  Ijeartilg  approtre  utxb  rljeerfullg 
submit  tt|emselues  to  ttje  form  of  gouernment  afcupteii 
for  tljis  l^tate,  anb  Ijope  iljat  tlje  luiteb  American 
States  mill  long  mniinue  free  an&  independent:  tljat 
itjeg  esteem  tlje  last  artirle  of  tfje  Hill  of  Sights  as 
tlje  rising  snn  of  religions  libertg,  to  reliette  tljem  from 
a  long  nigljt  of  errlesiastiral  bondage,  anit  bo  most 
earnestly  request  ani  expert  tljat  tljis  Ijuuse  mill  go 
on  to  romplete  tuljat  is  so  nnblij  begun,  iljat  is,  to  raise 
religions  as  mell  as  rttttl  libertn  to  tlje  ^emtlj  of  glorg, 
ani  make  Hirginia  an  asglum  for  free  enquiry,  knowl- 
edge, anft   tl|e  uirtnous  of  etterg  denomination. 


Journal  House  of  Delegates  of  Virginia,  Friday,  October  11,  1776 


W841.0 


NOTE 


T  HAS  seemed  well  to  put  together  a  sort  of 
biographical  dictionary  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College  before  the  year  1825.  As  it  happened, 
1825  marks  a  turning  point  for  Hampden  Sid- 
ney itself,  regardless  of  the  opening  of  the  University  of 
Virginia.  But  it  should  be  interesting  to  know  something 
of  what  Hampden  Sidney  had  accomplished  during  the 
half  century  from  its  foundation  to  1825.  Such  founda- 
tions were  not  wholly  pleasing  to  Mr.  Jefferson,  not  thor- 
oughly understood  by  him,  and  of  course  he  was  right  in 
wanting  a  University. 

The  material  of  this  dictionary  falls  into  two  parts,  one 
for  the  eighteenth  century  and  one  for  the  nineteenth, 
each  with  its  index.  There  is  a  certain  pleasure  in  classi- 
fication, notwithstanding  the  insuperable  difficulties.  The 
result  in  this  instance  perhaps  is  that  the  small  book  is 
more  a  reading  book  than  a  reference  book.  However, 
the  opportunity  has  been  made  use  of  to  offer  a  revision 
(not  yet  thorough),  of  the  general  catalogue  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College  as  far  as  1825, — that  is  to  say,  through 
the  printed  catalogue  for  1824.  By  recourse  to  the  Min- 
utes of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  to  the  Minutes  of  the 
Literary  Societies,  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  names  have 
been  recovered  for  the  list  and  a  good  many  corrections 
entered.  The  student's  place  of  origin  has  been  regarded 
as  of  great  importance.  Sometimes  this  has  been  guessed 
at.   It  is  hoped  that  the  geography  of  the  catalogue  is  on 


Hampden  Sidney  College 


the  whole  adequately  sketched  out.   Unless  otherwise  indi- 
cated Virginia  is  the  state  in  the  case. 

Such  a  dictionary  as  this  is  naturally  an  affair  of  slow 
growth.  As  early  as  1782  the  Trustees  ordered  a  blank 
book  for  the  posting  of  every  proceeding  relative  to  the 
Academy.  The  work  was  begun,  but  how  far  carried  is 
uncertain.  A  few  fragments  remain.  In  1828  the  Board 
appointed  a  Committee  (Dr.  Rice,  Mr.  Gushing,  and 
Richard  N.  Venable)  to  prepare  a  history  of  the  College. 
As  an  outcome,  apparently,  George  W.  Dame  before  1835 
accumulated  a  mass  of  material,  historical  and  statistical, 
which  was  all  lost.  Dr.  Dame  said  that  among  these  papers 
was  a  full  catalogue.  In  1842  President  Maxwell,  Mr. 
Sparrow,  and  James  D.  Wood  were  a  Committee  of  the 
Board  to  prepare  a  catalogue  of  the  Alumni.  If  they  had 
access  to  Dr.  Dame's  catalogue,  nothing  was  said  about  it 
and  nothing  was  done  about  it.  During  the  year  1850  the 
Philanthropic  Society  printed  a  catalogue  of  its  members. 
Professor  Venable  and  Lewis  Holladay  were  of  the  Com- 
mittee to  do  the  work;  which  was  hurriedly  done,  but  ac- 
knowledgments are  due  for  that  which  was  done.  In  1856 
the  Union  Society  printed  its  catalogue,  also  a  disappoint- 
ment and  a  valued  document.  During  1857  (before  the 
month  of  June)  the  College  issued  a  catalogue  of  degree 
men.  Joseph  McMurran  was  the  compiler,  perhaps  at  the 
suggestion  of  Professor  Martin.  The  Philanthropic  So- 
ciety brought  out  its  second  general  catalogue  in  1860; 
many  names  were  added,  for  the  college  had  been  pros- 
perous for  ten  years.  After  the  war  the  College  published 
"a  catalogue  general  and  annual  from  January  1,  1776, 
to  June  13,  1867."   Professor  Martin,  who  had  charge  of 


Dictionary  of  Biography 


the  general  part  (degree  men  only),  made  this  note — 
easily  understood, — "From  1863  to  1866  inclusive  there 
were  no  graduates."  This  catalogue  is  one  of  the  war 
books. 

June  1875,  Professor  Lewis  Holladay  and  Judge  F.  N. 
Watkins  were  appointed  by  the  Board  a  Committee  "to 
cause  a  catalogue  of  the  Alumni  and  former  students, 
trustees,  faculty,  etc.,  to  be  prepared  and  published,"  and 
at  the  Centennial  Commencement,  June  1876,  "the  mem- 
bers of  the  faculty  were  associated  with  Professor  Holla- 
day  in  the  preparation  of  a  catalogue,  etc.,  of  the  insti- 
tution from  its  origin."  At  the  same  time,  the  Rev.  T.  W. 
Hooper,  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  was  ap- 
pointed to  write  a  complete  history  of  this  Centennial 
Commencement.  It  appears  that  Professor  Holladay  and 
Dr.  Atkinson  (President  of  the  College)  interested  Mr. 
Charles  Van  Woodson,  of  Prince  Edward  County,  in  the 
assembling  of  notes  for  a  general  catalogue;  and  that 
President  Mcllwaine  persuaded  Dr.  Hooper  to  take  over 
Mr.  Woodson's  material,  work  it  up,  and  add  to  it.  Dr. 
Mcllwaine  himself  sent  out  printed  questionnaires  in  fur- 
therance of  the  secular  task.  Dr.  Hooper  shaped  up  his 
material  for  the  printer,  manuscript  covering  the  period 
1776-1892.  As  late  as  1896  Dr.  Mcllwaine  was  having 
questionnaires  returned  to  him,  data  regarding  students 
at  the  College  as  early  as  1812.  What  became  of  the  bulk 
of  Dr.  Mcllwaine's  questionnaire  material  is  a  mystery. 
And  nothing  was  done  about  Dr.  Hooper's  manuscript  un- 
til President  McAllister  and  Professor  Bagby  took  hold  of 
it.  In  1908,  under  Dr.  Bagby's  editorship,  there  was  pub- 
lished a  "general  catalogue  of  the  officers  and  students  of 


Hampden  Sidney  College 


Hampden  Sidney  College:  1776-1906."  Dr.  Bagby,  by 
his  plan,  was  forced  to  re-arrange  Dr.  Hooper's  material; 
and  within  the  space  allowed  him,  Dr.  Bagby  could  not 
use  all  of  Dr.  Hooper's  biographical  data.  Dr.  Bagby  was 
at  vast  pains  to  make  an  index  to  his  catalogue,  which  is 
about  as  perfect  as  any  such  work  can  be. 

How  unfortunate  that  after  all  these  intentions  and 
attempts  (including  the  work  now  submitted)  there  is 
so  much  still  to  do.  There  is  pertinence  in  Taine's  remark 
about  the  duty  of  each  generation  in  the  item  of  taking 
care  of  its  dead:  a  service  we  owe  especially  to  those 
among  us  who  have  left  but  an  inexact  or  incomplete  idea 
of  themselves.  It  is  a  regret  to  Dr.  Eggleston,  who  is  now 
in  charge  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  that  the  institution 
has  been  too  neglectful  of  this  plain  obligation;  and  he 
has  encouraged  this  work.  To  Dr.  Eggleston  the  work  is 
inscribed,  for  without  his  interest,  shown  from  first  to  last, 
the  idea  could  hardly  have  been  realized. 

A.  J.  Morrison. 
August,  1920. 
November,  1921. 


Ctgjrteenti)  Centurp 


Sanclus  .Amor  Patriae  Dal  Minimum — Sidney 


list 


Aiken,  James,  1796 Cumberland  (  ?) 

Alexander,  Archibald  :  see  1799 

Allen,  Cary,  1788 Cumberland 

Allen,  William  Austin,  1802 Powhatan 

Baker,  William,  1787 Prince  Edward  (  ?) 

Bell,  David,  1786 Buckingham  or  Prince  Edward 

Bibb,  George  M.,  1791 Prince  Edward 

Blythe,  James,  1788 North  Carolina 

Bolling,  Archibald,  1786 Buckingham 

Brown,  Andrew,  1791 South  Carolina 

Brown,  George,  1800 Charlotte 

Cabell,  George,  1779 Buckingham 

Cabell,  George,  Jr.,  1789 Nelson 

Cabell,  Hector,  1778 Nelson 

Cabell,  Joseph,  Jr.,  1778 Buckingham 

Cabell,  Joseph  C,  1796 : Nelson 

Cabell,  Landon,  1780 Nelson 

Cabell,  Nicholas,  Jr.,  1799 Nelson 

Cabell,  William,  Jr.,  1780 Nelson 

Cabell,  William  H.,  1789 Nelson 

Calhoun,  George,  1792 Prince  Edward 

Calhoun,  William,  1787 Prince  Edward 

Caldwell,  Allen,  1790 Charlotte 

Caldwell,  John,  1792 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Callaway,  Henry,  1788 Amherst 

Callaway,  Robert,  1788 Amherst 

Campbell,  John  P.,  1791 Augusta 

Carr,  Dabney,  1789 Louisa 

Carrington,  Clement,  1776 Charlotte 

Carrington,  Paul,  Jr.,  1776 Charlotte 

Carter,  James,  1788 Prince  Edward  (?) 

Charles,  James,  1788 York  ( ?) 

Clay,  Joseph,  1781 Georgia 

Cocke,  James,  1789 Powhatan 

Cocke,  John,   1791 


List]  11 

Cocke,  John  R.,  1799 

Cocke,  William  Archer,  1789 Powhatan 

Cole,  James  D.,  1800 Charlotte  (?) 

Cole,  William,  1796 Albemarle  ( ?) 

Coleman,  Henry  E.,  1786 Halifax 

Coles,  Walter,  1790 Albemarle 

Craghead,  George,  1778 Mecklenburg  (?) 

Crawford, ,  1785 Amherst  (Nelson)   (?) 

Daniel,  William,  1791 ; Cumberland  (?) 

Dickson,  Hugh,  1796 South  Carolina 

Doak,  Samuel,  (see  1776-  '83 ) 

Dobbins,  Robert,  1799 South  Carolina 

Dodson,  Daniel,  1794 '. Prince  Edward  (?) 

Drew,  Benjamin,  1786 _ Cumberland  (?) 

Early,  Abner,  1788 Amherst  or  Bedford 

Epes,  John,  1790 Nottoway   ( ?) 

Eppes,  John  W.,  1786 Chesterfield 

Plournoy,  David,  1791 Powhatan  ( ?) 

Flournoy,  Patrick  H.,  1791 

Fontaine,  Patrick  H.,  1791 

Giles,  William  B.,  1779 Amelia 

Hackley,  Samuel,  1776 Culpeper 

Harrison,  William  H.,  1787 Charles  City 

Henry,  Edward,  1789 Prince  Edward 

Henry,  John  T.,  1791 

Hill,  William,  1789 Cumberland 

Holcombe,  Henry,  1781 Prince  Edward 

Humphreys,  Solomon,  1793 

Hurt,  Robert,  1800 

James,  Thomas,  1786 

Jameson,  Clement  R.?  1792 Charlotte 

Jennings,  Jacob,  1791 Prince  Edward  ( ?) 

Jennings,  Samuel  K.,  1791 Prince  Edward  (?) 

Jones,  Francis,  1791 Nottoway  or  Amelia 

Jones,  James,  1791 Nottoway 

Jones,  John,  1800 

Johnston,  Andrew,  1784 Prince  Edward 


12  [List 

Johnston,  Charles,  1783 Prince  Edward 

Johnston,  Edward,  1783 Prince  Edward 

Johnston,  Peter,  1776 Prince  Edward 

King,  John,  1786 Prince  Edward  (?) 

Lamkin,  (Lambdin),  John,  1790 Amelia 

Lee,  Aylett,  1779 „ Westmoreland 

Legrand,  Nash,  1786 Prince  Edward 

Lockett,  Samuel,  1800 Mecklenburg 

Lockett,  Thomas,  1800 ■. Mecklenburg 

Lumpkin,  Griffin,  1799 Nottoway 

Lyle,  James,  1791 

McRobert,  Ebenezer,  1786 Prince  Edward 

McRobert,  Theodorick,  1786 .Prince  Edward 

Madison,  William,  1778 „ Orange 

Meade,  David,  1786 Prince  George  or  Amelia 

Means,  George,  1792 Richmond  ( ?) 

Miller,  John,  1799 _ _ 

Mills,  Charles,  1799 

Mitchell,  James,  (see  1776-83) 

Montgomery,  Benjamin  R.,  1799,  A.  B South  Carolina 

Moore,  George,  1791 _ Lunenburg 

Morton,  John  Archer,  1791 

Morton,  Jacob,  1795 

Morton,  Thomas  A.,  1791 Prince  Edward 

Mosby,  Wade,  1777 Powhatan 

Moseley,  Edward,  1800 _ 

Moseley,  William,  1792 Powhatan  (?) 

Nash,  John  T.,  1800 

Pattillo,  Henry,  1787 North  Carolina 

Plummer,  Kemp,  1786 Gloucester 

Poage,  Thomas,  1790.,  A.  B., Augusta 

Price,  Charles,  1792 

Read,  Clement,  1787,  A.  B Charlotte 

Rice,  James  Hervey,  1793 _ Kentucky  (?) 

Robins,  John  G. ,  1795 

Royall,  John,  1789 Powhatan 

Sandifer,  Abram,  1789 Charlotte 

Sankey,  John,  1788 Prince  Edward 


List]  13 

Scott,  Charles,  1776 Prince  Edward 

Scott,  John  B.,  1777 Prince  Edward 

Shields,  Patrick,  1787 Pittsylvania 

Sims,  David,  1791 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Smith,  David,  1790,  A.  B Pennsylvania 

Spencer,  John,  1790 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Spencer,  William,  1788 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Springer,  John,  (see  1776- '83 ) 

Sydnor,  William,  1790 _ 

Trent,  Stephen,  1787 Cumberland 

Turpin,  Thomas,  1786 Powhatan 

Venable,  Abraham  B.,  1778 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Joseph,  1780 Charlotte 

Venable,  Nathaniel,  1794 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Richard  N.,  1779 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Samuel  W.,  1777 „ Prince  Edward 

Venable,  William  L.,  1800 Prince  Edward 

Waddel,  Moses,  1791,  A.  B North  Carolina 

Wade,  Anderson,  1794 Prince  Edward 

Ward,  Edward,  1789 Nottoway  (Amelia) 

Watkins,  Francis,  1790 Prince  Edward 

Watkins,  Henry  A.,  1789 Charlotte 

Watkins,  Henry  E.,  1796 Prince  Edward 

Watkins,  William  M.,  1791,  A.  B _ Charlotte 

Watt,  James,  1786,  A.  B 

Williamson,  Thomas,  1796 South  Carolina  ( ?) 

Williamson,  William,  1790,  A.  B South  Carolina 

Wilson,  John  M.,  1791,  A.  B North  Carolina 

WiNGPiELD,  Charles,  1779 Albemarle 

Witherspoon,  David  (see  1776- '83) 

Wood,  John  H.,  1791 Goochland  (?) 

Woodson,  Blake,  B.,  1789 „ Cumberland 


17764783 


Samuel  Stanhope  Smith 

The  cultivation  of  science  is  ever  esteemed  an  object  of 
great  importance  by  the  wise  and  good.  They  who  have 
turned  their  attention  to  it  with  the  most  success  are  always 
the  most  anxious  to  promote  it  amongst  others.  That  libe- 
rality of  sentiment,  that  refinement  of  soul,  thac  capacity  for 
public  usefulness,  and  that  unaffected  morality  and  religion 
which  usually  accompany  real  knowledge,  are  strong  induce- 
ments to  the  judicious  to  desire  an  extensive  diffusion  of 
its  salutary  influence.  - 

o 

The  Presbyterian  clergy  in  Virginia  have  uniformly  aimed 
at  this  from  their  first  settlement  in  the  country.  They 
repeatedly  instituted  and  patronized  seminaries  of  learning 
in  their  different  circles.  But  the  small  degree  of  influence 
which  they  possessed  in  the  older  counties  under  the  estab- 
lishment and  the  narrowness  of  their  private  fortunes,  ren- 
dered their  efforts  of  that  sort  very  feeble,  and  no  remark- 
able advantage  was  derived  from  their  small,  local  schools. 

Convinced  of  the  necessity  of  something  more  extensive 
and  popular,  they  endeavored  to  erect  and  promote  by  sub- 
scription, a  public  academy,  in  which  the  various  parts  of 
science  should  be  taught,  and  which  should  render  education 
more  conveniently  attainable  in  counties  remote  from  the 
seat  of  government,  where  the  College  of  William  and  Mary 
had  been  long  before  established.  In  the  year  1772  an  at- 
tempt of  this  kind  was  made,  but  through  some  fatality  the 
benevolent  design  miscarried.  Two  years  afterwards  when 
they  had  recovered  a  little  from  the  discouragement,  it  was 
repeated  with  greater  success. 

At  this  time  the  Rev.  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  arrived  in 
Virginia;  a  man  well  qualified  in  many  respects  for  con- 
ducting such  a  design.     He  had  been  for  some  years  em- 


1776-1783]  15 

ployed  as  a  Professor  in  the  College  of  Nassau  Hall,  New 
Jersey,  with  much  credit  both  on  account  of  his  abilities  and 
conduct.  Though  a  young  man  he  was  fully  equal  to  the  task 
of  superintending  the  scheme  in  contemplation.  The  Pres- 
bytery, therefore,  immediately  turned  their  attention  to  him 
as  a  principal  in  the  affair.  And  through  their  solicitation 
and  the  earnest  desire  of  many  respectable  characters 
amongst  the  people  who  had  become  acquainted  with  his 
merit,  Mr.  Smith  consented  to  take  upon  him  the  direction 
of  such  an  institution  as  has  been  mentioned,  provided  the 
expedient  of  a  subscription  should  succeed.  The  com- 
mencement of  the  dispute  between  Great  Britain  and 
America  at  this  time  formed  in  some  measure  a  coalition 
of  religious  parties.  At  least  all  orders  of  men  who  were 
determined  to  defend  the  liberties  of  their  country  found 
that  they  needed  each  other's  assistance,  and  this  gradually 
introduced  liberal  sentiments,  which  were  favorable  to  the 
promotion  of  the  Academy.  Amongst  the  subscribers  were 
a  great  number  of  names  which  belonged  to  different  relig- 
ious denominations.* 

Mr.  Smith,  plainly  a  founder  of  the  Academy  of  Hampden 
Sidney,  was  a  son  of  Dr.  Eobert  Smith  of  Pennsylvania,  a 
native  of  Londonderry  in  the  north  of  Ireland,  who  had  for 
many  years  been  a  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  and 
a  teacher  of  boys  in  Lancaster  County,  Pennsylvania. 
Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  was  born  in  the  year  17J50  at  Pequea, 
his  father's  home;  was  strictly  trained  in  his  father's  school 
(where  he  learned  to  speak  Latin  without  halting)  and 
graduated  at  Princeton  in  1769  at  the  head  of  his  class. 
Tutor  at  Princeton  three  years,  about  1773  Mr.  Smith  came 
to  Virginia  as  a  missionary  of  his  church  and  for  the  sake 
of  his  health.  He  was  a  man  of  letters  and  science  and 
piety  and  good  manners,  and  his  success  was  pronounced 
as  preacher  and  in  general.  It  is  as  certain  as  any  conjec- 
ture that  if  Mr.  Smith  and  his  friends  had  not  established 
a   school   in   Prince   Edward   County,    at   the   place   called 


Statement  of  1782  by  a  Committee  of  the  Trustees. 


16  [1776-1783 

Hampden  Sidney,  before  the  active  Revolution,  there  would 
never  have  been  a  school  established  there.  Samuel  Stan- 
hope Smith  returned  to  Princeton  in  1779.  He  had  been 
greatly  instrumental  in  giving  this  idea  of  an  Academy  a 
local  habitation  and  a  name.  This  is  about  all  that  can  be 
said  briefly  about  the  first  Rector.  He  was  equal  to  his 
destiny  in  the  matter  of  organizing  an  Academy  in  Prince 
Edward  County.  His  later  career  is  matter  of  larger  his- 
tory. He  was  President  of  Princeton  College.  Before  his 
death  in  1819  he  had  come  to  be  as  widely  known  as  any 
man  of  his  profession  in  the  United  States. 

Rector  Smith 's  plan  for  the  Academy  of  Hampden  Sidney 
was  enlightened  and  commonsense.  He  said  in  the  fall  of 
1775:  ''The  system  of  education  will  resemble  that  which 
is  adopted  in  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  save  that  a  more 
particular  attention  shall  be  paid  to  the  cultivation  of  the 
English  language  than  is  usually  done  in  places  of  public 
education.  Three  masters  and  professors  are  ready  to  enter 
in  November,  and  as  many  more  may  be  easily  procured  as 
the  increased  number  of  students  may  at  any  time  hereafter 
require.  And  our  prospects  at  present  are  so  extremely 
flattering  that  it  is  probable  we  shall  be  obliged  to  procure 
two  professors  more  before  the  expiration  of  the  year. 
.  .  .  It  is  true  the  Presbyterian  clergy  first  concerted 
the  measure,  as  friends  to  the  interests  of  learning  and 
virtue,  which  had  lain  neglected  long  enough,  and  under 
their  auspices  it  acquired  considerable  maturity.  But  far 
from  being  governed  by  contracted  notions,  that  they  might 
extend  the  utility  of  the  institution  they  have  now  yielded 
the  power  of  visitation  and  of  managing  the  general  concern 
of  the  Academy  into  the  hands  of  trustees  who  are  chiefly 
of  the  Church  of  England." 

George  Craghead 

George  Craghead  was  one  of  the  first  students  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  and  one  of  the  earliest  annalists  of  the  place. 


1776-1783]  17 

He  came  to  the  Academy  at  its  opening  and  continued  his 
studies  there  until  November,  1778,  when  he  was  taken  away 
and  sent  to  Washington-Henry  Academy  in  Hanover  County. 
He  was  living  perhaps  as  late  as  1845.  In  a  letter  of  remin- 
iscence written  to  Judge  F.  N.  Watkins  of  Prince  Edward 
County,  Mr.  Craghead  said:  "In  May,  1776,  the  walls  of  the 
Academy  were  about  three  feet  high,  and  on  account  of  scar- 
city of  room  for  the  students  to  study  in,  they  obtained 
leave  from  the  undertaker  [contractor,  we  say],  Mr.  Cole- 
man, to  erect  little  huts  with  the  shingles  that  were  intended 
to  cover  the  Academy.  There  were  eight  or  ten  of  these 
huts,  and  at  night  a  candle  being  placed  on  a  plank  in  each 
hut  showed  how  intent  the  inhabitants  were  in  studying 
till  9  or  10  o'clock.  That  year  the  students  devoted  their 
time  to  study;  very  little  time  went  to  recreation  or  amuse- 
ment. About  the  first  of  July,  Mr.  Hackley,  a  student  about 
twenty  years  of  age,  universally  beloved,  was  taken  with  a 
fever  and  in  a  few  days  died. 

At  the  opening  of  the  school  Capt.  Philemon  Holcomb 
engaged  with  the  Trustees  to  act  as  steward  for  the  small 
sum  of  £8  per  year  for  diet,  for  washing  and  bed  £3 ;  pro- 
visions at  that  time  very  cheap  and  plenty.  Capt.  Holcomb 
resigned  his  office  January  1st,  1777,  having  given  the  Trus- 
tees previous  notice,  and  Mr.  William  Bibb  was  chosen  for 
one  year  at  the  price  of  £11.  The  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence coming  in  the  summer  of  1776,  there  was  much  en- 
thusiasm among  the  students  to  learn  the  rudiments  of  the 
art  of  war.  They  formed  a  company,  adopted  a  uniform 
(a  hunting  shirt  dyed  purple)  and  chose  officers,  John  Blair 
Smith,  captain ;  David  Witherspoon,  lieutenant ;  and  Samuel 
Venable,  ensign.  In  September,  1777,  those  members  of  the 
company  over  sixteen  years  of  age  exchanged  their  numbers, 
(with  the  advice  of  the  President)  for  No.  1  in  the  militia 
of  the  county  and  marched  to  Williamsburg  to  defend  the 
place.  They  were  soon  discharged  without  any  fighting,  and 
as  the  fall  vacation  was  about  to  take  place,  they  returned 
to  their  expected  homes.     Several  of  them  never  returned  to 


18  [1776-1783 

the  Academy — some  entered  into  the  United  States  army  as 
officers,  and  others  enlisted  as  common  soldiers. 

Towards  the  end  of  1777  [rations  getting  scarce]  Mr. 
Bibb,  the  steward,  very  abruptly  quit.  The  Academy  was 
likely  to  have  been  discontinued,  but  Mr.  Nathaniel  Venable, 
Mr.  James  Allen,  senior,  and  I  believe,  Captain  John  Morton, 
united  and  agreed  to  furnish  provisions  for  twelve  months, 
and  employed  a  Mr.  Young  with  his  family  to  attend  to  the 
cooking,  etc.,  for  the  sum  of  £20  only  per  student :  they  acted 
faithfully  until  the  end  of  the  year  1778,  but  lost  very  con- 
siderably on  account  of  the  depreciation  of  paper  money. 
In  the  next  year,  1779,  I  was  informed  that  the  students 
found  themselves  chiefly  with  provisions,  and  employed 
cooks,  a  poor  business  I  expect. 

I  am  satisfied  [Mr.  Craghead's  letter  ran  on]  there  never 
was  as  many  students  at  Hampden  Sidney  after  the  year 
1776.  I  often  heard  the  then  steward,  Capt.  Holcomb,  say 
he  boarded  seventy-five  that  year;  the  rest  boarded  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  some  few  boarded  at  home.  The  names 
of  the  students  were  placed  at  first  in  three  classes,  No.  1, 
2,  and  3.  At  the  examination  it  was  usual  to  say  white, 
yellow,  black.  Those  who  had  been  very  studious  and  dis- 
tinguished themselves  before  the  examiners  were  publicly 
applauded  by  the  President  before  the  students  were  dis- 
missed (for  the  term),  and  those  who  had  been  negligent 
were  also  named,  with  disapprobation.  With  respect  to  the 
yellow  list,  nothing  was  said,  pro  or  con.  The  President 
always  informed  the  students  that  there  was  a  roll  con- 
stantly kept,  wherein  were  recorded  the  names  of  every 
student,  the  time  of  their  entry  and  departure,  their  place 
of  residence,  but  above  all,  the  manner  in  which  each  had 
conducted  himself — that  at  a  future  day  it  would  appear  at 
the  Academy  whose  conduct  had  been  approved  of  and 
whose  had  been  censured,  which  ought,  he  said,  to  stimulate 
every  student  who  had  any  regard  for  his  future  character. 

There  were  two  societies  at  the  Academy  in  1776,  one  was 
denominated  the  Cliosophic,  (I  believe)  and  the  other  Tully 


1776-1783]  19 

Whitfield,  which  last  was  changed  and  called  the  American 
Whig  Society.  They  kept  records  of  all  their  proceedings 
and  I  never  knew  a  single  sentence  to  be  expunged." 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  George  Craghead  did  not  write 
on  and  still  on.  And  it  is  a  pity  that  the  negligence  of  col- 
lege officials  let  all  those  records  disappear.  So  far  as  any- 
body knows,  there  is  not  any  excuse  for  the  meagreness  of 
the  records  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Very  little  has 
been  lost  by  fire. 

In  his  account  of  the  literary  societies  of  the  Academy,  it 
is  not  unlikely  that  Mr.  Craghead  was  in  error.  Samuel 
Stanhope  Smith  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  American 
Whig  Society  at  Princeton ;  John  Blair  Smith,  David  Wither- 
spoon,  Doak  and  Springer  were  members  of  that  Society. 
It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  first  societies  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  were  the  American  Whig  and  the  Tully  Whit- 
field, the  name  of  the  latter  being  changed  to  Cliosophic. 

When  Archibald  Alexander  made  his  first  missionary  jour- 
ney into  Southside  Virginia,  he  was  hospitably  entertained 
in  Lunenburg  County  by  Captain  William  Craighead  (or 
Craghead)  who  had  been  an  intimate  friend  of  Samuel 
Davies  in  Hanover,  and  by  William  Cowan,  the  only  Presby- 
terians in  the  Reedy  Creek  neighborhood  of  Lunenburg. 
William  Craghead  was  the  son  of  Thomas  Craghead  (Creag- 
head,  Craighead),  probably  son  of  Robert  Creaghead,  minis- 
ter of  Donoghmore,  north  of  Ireland.  Thoma3  Craghead 
was  a  minister  in  New  England,  Pennsylvania  and  Delaware. 
He  died  in  the  pulpit  in  1739.  His  younger  brother  was 
Alexander  Craighead,  well-known  in  Presbyterian  annals; 
and  his  son,  George  Creaghead,  was  a  Judge  in  Delaware, 
and  speaker  of  the  Council.  It  is  possible  that  Captain 
William  Craghead,  who  was  an  elder  in  Davies 's  church  in 
Hanover,  had  been  brought  to  Virginia  by  Davies.  William 
Craghead  married  a  daughter  of  the  elder  James  Hunt  (Life 
of  Alexander,  p.  137).  Captain  Craghead  died  in  1803  at  an 
advanced  age.  William  Cowan  died  in  1806 ;  he  had  been 
a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  and  his  will  was 


20  [1776-1783 

witnessed  by  George  Craghead.  "William  Oaghead's  will 
contains  mention  of  his  sons  George  and  Thomas  Thompson, 
and  of  his  grandson,  Edwin  Sandys.  George  Craghead,  who 
died  in  1851,  made  mention  in  his  will  of  his  brother,  Thomas 
Thompson;  and  ordered  payment  of  subscription  by  the 
testator  for  five  Hampden  Sidney  scholarships,  book  value 
$500.  The  executor  named  was  Dr.  Richard  J.  H.  Hatchett, 
a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1847-1852.  George 
Craghead 's  will  is  apparently  the  work  of  a  bachelor,  a  very 
old  bachelor.  If  George  Craghead,  who  died  in  1851  was 
the  writer  of  the  reminiscences  printed  by  Dr.  Foote,  he 
must  have  been  an  old  man,  ninety  years  old  or  nearly 
ninety.  Dr.  Foote  does  not  indicate  exactly  when  Mr.  Crag- 
head's  letter  was  written.  It  is  at  least  probable  that  the 
letter  was  written  after  1846.  Dr.  Foote  did  not  begin  his 
work  on  his  sketches  of  Virginia  until  about  1846  ;  and  Judge 
F.  N.  Watkins,  to  whom  Mr.  Craghead 's  letter  was  written, 
was  not  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  until  1844. 
This  is  slim  evidence.  If  Dr.  Foote  had  been  exact  in  his 
reference,  we  should  be  able  to  place  George  Craghead, 
author  of  this  most  interesting  letter,  without  any  difficulty. 
It  seems,  however,  likely  enough  that  George  Craghead,  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1776,  whose  connection  with 
the  place  would  have  been  forgotten  but  for  Mr.  Watkins 
and  Dr.  Foote,  died  after  the  Mexican  War,  in  Lunenburg 
County.     Such  is  the  concatenation  of  the  times. 

Samuel  Hackley 

b.  1756,  d.  1776.  "The  last  will  and  testament  of  Samuel 
Hackley — In  the  name  of  God,  Amen.  I,  Samuel  Hackley,  of 
Culpeper  County,  in  Virginia,  being  in  a  weak  state  of  body, 
tho'  yet  of  a  sound  mind,  do  make  and  declare  this  to  be  my 
last  and  only  will  and  testament.  After  resigning  my  spirit  to 
God  who  gave  it,  and  my  body  to  the  dust  to  be  buried  in  a 
decent  manner,  I  do  in  consideration  of  the  paternal  care  which 
my  uncle,  William  Ball  of  the  above-mentioned  County,  has 
always  exercised  over  me  and  the  expenses  he  has  incurred 


1776-1783]  21 

on  my  account,  give  and  bequeath  to  him,  the  said  William 
Ball,  the  whole  of  my  estate,  real  and  personal,  to  his  own 
proper  use  and  to  dispose  of  it  as  he  shall  think  proper,  and 
moreover  constitute  him  the  sole  executor  of  this,  my  last 
will  and  testament.  Given  under  my  hand  this  30th  day  of 
July,  Anno  Domini,  1776.  SAMUEL  HACKLEY. 

Signed,  sealed  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of  Phill.  Hol- 
combe,   [steward  of  the  Academy]  ;  John  Blair  Smith." 

This  will  was  presented  by  the  executor,  Mr.  Ball,  at 
August  Court,  1776,  Prince  Edward  Co.,  proved  and  ad- 
mitted to  record.  Dr.  Foote  (I,  400)  mentions  the  death  of 
"Mr.  Hackley,  a  student  about  twenty  years  of  age,  univer- 
sally beloved,"  who  was  taken  with  a  fever  in  July,  1776, 
and  in  a  few  days  died.  The  students  were  overcrowded 
that  first  year  of  the  Academy. 

Wade  Mosby,  in  his  pension  affidavit  many  years  after, 
must  have  confused  Samuel  Hackley  with  Samuel  Venable, 
but  in  the  circumstances  it  is  strange  he  should  have  made 
the  mistake. 

Peter  Johnston 

b.  1763,  d.  1831.  Peter  Johnston,  the  elder,  donor  of  the 
land  upon  which  Hampden  Sidney  College  stands,  a  native 
of  Edinburgh,  was  born  in  the  year  1710  and  died  in  Prince 
Edward  County  in  1786 :  apparently  the  life  of  no  person 
connected  with  Hampden  Sidney  College  fell  farther  back 
into  the  eighteenth  century.  Peter  Johnston  was  late  in 
marrying.  His  oldest  son,  Peter  Johnston,  was  entered  a 
pupil  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  before  the  year  1780, 
perhaps  as  early  as  1776.  It  was  his  father's  purpose  that 
he  should  become  a  minister  of  the  Church  of  England. 
About  the  year  1780,  young  Peter  Johnston  asked  his  father 
to  let  him  join  the  American  army.  The  old  gentleman 
refused,  being  something  of  a  Tory;  whereupon  the  laddie 
who  would  go  to  the  wars  abruptly  took  leave  of  his  father 
and  of  scholastic  pursuits.  He  rode  away  to  join  Lee  in  the 
South,  mounting  a  horse,  possibly  the  best  in  his  father's 


22  [1776-1783 

stable.  His  record  in  the  army  was  excellent.  After  the  war 
Peter  Johnston  came  home  and  studied  law.  He  did  well 
at  the  bar,  and  was  soon  in  politics,  representing  Prince 
Edward  County  thirteen  terms  in  the  legislature,  from  1792 
to  1811.  He  was  steadily  in  the  House,  of  which  he  was 
speaker  during  1806  and  1807.  In  1811  Peter  Johnston  was 
elected  circuit  judge  in  the  Prince  Edward  region.  He 
exchanged  circuits  with  Judge  Brockenbrough,  and  removed 
to  Southwest  Virginia.  His  home  was  at  Abingdon.  Judge 
Johnston  was  fond  of  society,  of  books,  and  of  fox  hunting. 
He  married  a  niece  of  Patrick  Henry,  and  named  his  nine 
sons  mostly  after  friends  he  had  made  in  the  army,  e.  g., 
John  Warfield,  Charles  Clement,  Beverly  Eandolph  and 
Joseph  Eggleston.  (Article  by  Dr.  Geo.  Ben  Johnston  in 
Kaleidoscope,  1908.)  Judge  Johnston  supplied  a  good  deal, 
and  very  interesting  material,  to  Garden's  Anecdotes  of  the 
Revolution. 

Clement  Carrington 

b.  1762,  d.  1847.  Son  of  Judge  Paul  Carrington,  the  elder, 
of  Charlotte  County.  A  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
Academy  perhaps  from  the  first  organization  of  the  school, 
Clement  Carrington  enlisted  as  a  volunteer  with  local  troops 
drafted  (including  many  from  the  Academy),  and  marched 
with  them  to  Williamsburg  about  1777.  After  this  'Hour 
of  duty"  was  over,  he  returned  to  school.  He  was  then  for 
a  short  time  in  Capt.  Thomas  Watkins's  troop  (Gen.  Law- 
son's  brigade)  at  Brandon  on  James  River.  Coming  home, 
he  was  soon  roused  up  in  the  night  by  an  alarm  that  Corn- 
wallis  was  at  Dan  River.  This  time  there  was  severe  work 
ahead.  As  a  cadet  in  Lee's  Legion  (a  cadet  drew  no  pay  or 
clothes)  Clement  Carrington  fought  in  the  Southern  Army, 
and  came  near  dying  of  a  bayonet  wound  at  Eutaw.  After 
the  war  he  went  west,  but  came  home  and  settled  down 
on  his  plantation  in  Charlotte,  "Edgehill."  He  was  a  good 
manager  and  made  a  success  of  his  farm.  He  was  years 
getting  over  his  wounds  of  1781,  but  shortly  before  his  death 


1776-1783]  23 

rode  erect  on  his  horse,  in  good  flesh,  and  had  lost  only  one 
tooth.  Long  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Col. 
Carrington  made  repeated  and  generous  donations  to  its 
funds.  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby,  the  historian,  married  his 
daughter. 

Virginia   Historical  Register,   II,   166-169. 

Grigsby 's   Centennial  Address    (Hampden   Sidney)    p.   VI. 

Paul  Carrington 

Sept.  26,  1776,  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney 
Academy  entered  a  minute  that  Messrs.  N.  Venable  and  P. 
Carrington  be  allowed  to  build  cabins  on  the  premises  for 
their  sons.  That  was  a  time  when  the  plant  idea  was  not 
overgrown  in  schools,  and  improvisations  could  be  readily 
(not  always  happily)  worked.  The  Board's  minute  is  not 
proof  that  Paul  Carrington,  the  younger,  was  a  student  at 
the  Academy  in  1776.  It  is,  however,  very  likely  that  he 
was.  Paul  Carrington,  the  younger,  was  the  son  of  Judge 
Paul  Carrington,  Trustee,  etc.  He  was  born  in  1764 ;  joined 
the  army  like  his  brother  Clement;  was  at  the  battle  of 
Guilford  Courthouse,  and  saw  other  hard  service;  studied 
law  at  William  and  Mary  after  1781,  and  before  his  death 
in  1816  had  been  for  some  years  on  the  bench  of  the  General 
Court.  He  also  was  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College. 
His  home  was  in  Charlotte  County. 

John  Baytop  Scott 

Thomas  Scott,  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  had 
several  sons.  His  grandson,  Judge  Christopher  Scott,  of 
Arkansas,  said  that  Thomas  Scott  had  educated  all  of  his 
sons  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  at  William  and  Mary.  The 
statement  does  not  show  that  all  of  the  sons  were  at  both 
colleges.  Thomas  Scott's  sons  were  Francis,  (born  in  1756 
and  married  in  1777);  John  B.,  born  1761;  Charles,  born 
1763;  and  Thomas  Tomkies,  born  1765.  We  will  suppose 
that  Francis  Scott  may  have  been  a  student  at  Hampden 


24  [1776-1783 

Sidney  during  the  few  months  before  his  marriage.  John 
B.  Scott  was  certainly  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  it 
is  to  be  hoped  that  Charles  and  Thomas  T.  were  registered 
on  the  books.     Let  us  call  them  alumni. 

Some  years  ago,  Louis  Houck,  an  old  man  of  great  ability, 
put  together  a  History  of  Missouri.  John  B.JScott  having 
been  stationed  for  a  while  at  Cape  Girardeau,  Mn  Houck 's 
residence,  the  old  gentleman  looked  up  his  record.  John  B. 
Scott,  according  to  Mr.  Houck,  was  born  in  Prince  Edward 
County,  in  1761;  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy,  which 
he  left  in  1777  to  join  a  company  of  cavalry,  commanded  by 
his  brother,  Charles  Scott.  He  served  to  the  end  of  the 
Revolution  (in  Lee's  Legion),  coming  out  as  lieutenant.  He 
then  resumed  his  studies,  going  to  William  and  Mary  Col- 
lege. John  Scott,  his  brother  Charles,  and  Peter  Johnston, 
Jr.,  were  members  of  the  Virginia  Society  of  the  Cincinnati. 
In  1799  he  was  appointed  Brigadier  General  of  Virginia 
militia ;  and  in  April,  1805,  was  made  Brevet  Colonel  in  the 
regular  army,  and  stationed  at  Cape  Girardeau,  Missouri^ 
as  Commandant  in  that  division  under  Governor  William 
Henry  Harrison,  of  the  District  of  Louisiana.  April,  1806, 
he  returned  to  Virginia.  Those  were  queer  times.  General 
Wilkinson  was  moving  in  the  west,  Burr  was  moving  in  the 
west,  and  it  must  have  been  thought  well  by  government 
for  Colonel  Scott  to  come  home  and  report.  He  was  given 
the  office  of  U.  S.  Marshal  for  the  District  of  Virginia,  and 
as  such  was  in  charge  of  the  Burr  trial  in  1807. 

John  B.  Scott  after  his  return  to  Virginia,  made  his  home 
in  Halifax  County,  near  Scottsburg.  His  son  Christopher 
was  born  there  in  1807  and  died  in  Arkansas  in  1859,  after 
fifteen  years  of  service  on  the  Supreme  Court  bench.  John 
B.  Scott  died  in  1814,  just  after  his  nomination  for  Congress. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College  from  1792  to  1806;  and  his  brother  Charles 
was  a  member  of  that  Board  for  some  years  after  1795. 


1776-1783]  25 


Samuel  Doak 

b.  1749,  d.  1830.  Son  of  Samuel  and  Jane  (Mitchell)  Doak, 
both  of  whom  had  come  in  their  youth  from  the  North  of 
Ireland  to  Chester  County,  Pennslyvania.  Soon  after  their 
marriage  they  went  to  the  frontier  in  Augusta  County,  Vir- 
ginia, where  Samuel  Doak,  the  younger  was  born.  At  the 
age  of  sixteen,  Samuel  Doak  began  his  studies  at  Mr.  Alex- 
ander's school.  His  father,  a  capable  farmer,  rather  dis- 
couraged him  about  getting  an  education.  The  boy  per- 
sisted, made  his  own  money,  and  put  himself  through  Prince- 
ton College.  He  graduated  in  1775,  and  was  then  for  a  short 
time  teacher  in  Dr.  Robert  Smith 's  school  at  Pequea.  Samuel 
Stanhope  Smith  drew  him  from  Pequea  (in  Pennsylvania) 
to  Hampden  Sidney  the  spring  of  1776,  to  be  tutor  or  second 
assistant.  He  had  begun  his  studies  in  theology  under  Dr. 
Robert  Smith,  continued  them  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and 
finished  them  the  fall  of  1777  under  Principal  Graham  of 
Liberty  Hall  in  Augusta.  He  preached  for  a  time  near 
Abingdon  or  Wolf  Hills,  and  then  followed  down  the  Hol- 
ston  into  the  Cherokee  country.  Samuel  Doak  was  a  born 
teacher;  wherever  he  was  he  taught.  The  Cherokee  bothered 
him,  but  he  fought  them  off,  and  kept  on  about  his  business. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1784  that  framed 
the  constitution  of  the  State  of  Franklin,  and  was  careful 
to  have  a  clause  inserted  providing  for  a  university.  He 
settled  finally  in  Washington  County,  East  Tennessee  now — 
and  his  academy  there  grew  into  Washington  College.  He 
was  in  charge  of  the  institution  from  its  inception  to  1818. 
His  son  took  hold  of  it  then  and  Dr.  Doak  was  free  to  found 
another  college,  Tusculum.  Dr.  Doak  was  no  believer  in 
automatic  rules,  he  would  even  have  no  classes  in  his  col- 
leges. He  looked  after  the  individual  and  made  the  most 
of  him.  Nullius  addictus  jurare  in  verba,  he  was  ever  tell- 
ing his  boys.  He  wanted  them  to  think.  He  was  the  pioneer 
headmaster  of  Tennessee,  a  State  not  without  headmasters 


26  [1776-1783 

today.    Dr.  Doak  was  old-fashioned  in  manners  and  virtue. 
He  had  a  horror  of  portraits,  thought  them  sacrilegious. 
Sprague   III,   392-397. 

David  Witherspoon 

It  is  said  that  David  Witherspoon,  youngest  son  of  Presi- 
dent Witherspoon  of  Princeton,  was  graduated  at  Princeton 
at  the  age  of  fourteen.  Since  he  was  in  the  class  of  1774, 
the  interpretation  of  the  statement  is  that  he  was  born  in 
the  year  1759  or  1760.  And  if  the  statement  is  true,  David 
Witherspoon  came  to  Hampden  Sidney  in  his  sixteenth  year 
to  be  third  assistant  to  his  brother  in  law.  Samuel  Stanhope 
Smith.  It  is  likely  that  he  was  tutor  a  very  short  time, 
probably  going  into  the  army.  He  studied  law,  married  the 
widow  of  Governor  Abner  Nash  of  North  Carolina  (brother 
of  Col.  John  Nash  of  Prince  Edward  County),  and  settled 
for  the  practice  of  the  law  at  Newberne  in  North  Carolina. 
He  was  the  father  of  the  Rev.  John  Witherspoon,  D.  D., 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  David  Witherspoon  himself 
was  church  warden  of  the  Established  Church  at  Newberne 
as  early  as  1789.  He  returned  to  Princeton  about  1800  and 
died  there. 

Vass,  History  of  Newberne  Presbyterian  Churchy Eich- 

mond,  1886;   Index,  N.  C.   State  Eeeords. 

James  Mitchell 

b.  1747,  d.  1841.  Son  of  Robert  Mitchell,  who  was  born 
in  the  North  of  Ireland,  came  to  America  in  his  youth,  set- 
tled at  Pequea,  Lancaster  County,  Pennsylvania,  married 
there,  and  removed  to  Bedford  County,  Virginia,  before 
1776.  Robert  Mitchell  lived  to  the  age  of  eighty-five.  He 
had  thirteen  children,  all  of  whom  lived  to  be  at  least 
seventy.  Robert  Mitchell  talked  much  of  Derry  and  the 
sufferings  of  his  family  at  the  seige  of  Derry.  James  Mit- 
chell, born  at  Pequea,  may  have  been  a  pupil  in  Dr.  Robert 
Smith's  school  there.  About  1775  (his  father  having  come 
south)   he  was  at  school  at  Liberty  Hall  Academy.     The 


1776-1783]  27 

summer  of  1776  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  engaged  him  to  be 
tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney.  The  Academy  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney was  hard  put  to  it  to  get  enough  teachers  for  the  nume- 
rous students  of  the  year  1776.  In  1781  James  Mitchell  was 
licensed  by  his  Presbytery  to  preach — while  the  Presbytery 
was  in  session  for  that  purpose  a  courier  came  by  the  church 
and  made  proclamation  of  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis.  For 
a  few  years  after  1782,  Mr.  Mitchell  was  back  and  forth 
between  Virginia  and  Kentucky.  He  followed  his  father  in 
law,  David  Rice,  to  Kentucky,  and  seems  to  have  been  the 
first  teacher  of  Transylvania  Seminary  at  Danville.  About 
1786  he  became  pastor  of  the  Peaks  Church,  Bedford 
County,  and  remained  in  that  office  fifty-five  years.  In  1787 
he  was  greatly  concerned  in  the  Great  Revival,  which  started 
among  the  Baptists  of  Charlotte  County.  That  year  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  conferred  on  him  the  Bachelor's  degree. 
Mr.  Mitchell  was  for  a  time  Principal  of  a  famous  school, 
New  London  Academy,  Bedford  County,  and  for  some  years 
was  a  Trustee  of  Liberty  Hall  Academy. 


This  note  is  given  here,  regarding  one  of  the  first  Trustees  of 
Hampden  Sidney,  because  of  the  implications  of  the  subject.  David 
Kice  was  associated  with  Davies,  with  Todd  and  Waddel  (whose  school 
was  the  precursor  of  Hampden  Sidney) ;  was  the  uncle-in-law  of 
Samuel  Stanhope  Smith,  etc.  Every  institution  has  its  family  history. 
Samuel   Stanhope   Smith   might   not   have   come   to   Virginia   but   for 

David  Rice 

b.  1733,  d.  1816.  Son  of  David  Rice  of  Hanover  County, 
and  grandson  of  Thomas  Rice,  an  Englishman  of  Welsh 
extraction  who  emigrated  to  Virginia,  and  then,  on  a  voyage 
home  to  England,  it  is  supposed  was  assassinated  on  board 
ship.  David  Rice,  the  elder,  was  a  farmer,  and  a  member  of 
the  established  church.  He  would  not  keep  slaves;  he 
thought  them  unprofitable.  His  wife  thought  it  wrong  to 
keep  them.  David  Rice  grew  up  in  a  region  much  influenced 
by  Samuel  Davies.  He  went  to  school  to  James  Waddel,  at 
the  house  of  John  Todd.  When  Davies  left  Virginia  to  be 
President   of  Princeton,   young   Rice   went   with   him   and 


28  [1776-1783 

graduated  at  Princeton  in  1761.  In  1763,  having  preached 
there,  he  was  about  to  settle  in  North  Carolina,  but  was 
persuaded  to  take  charge  of  Davies's  church  in  Hanover. 
That  year  he  married  a  daughter  of  Samuel  Blair  of  Penn- 
sylvania, aunt  of  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith.  After  four  or 
five  rather  difficult  years  in  Hanover,  Mr.  Rice  settled  in 
Bedford  County,  near  the  Peaks  of  Otter.  He  was  very  suc- 
cessful there  in  his  work  as  a  minister.  His  brother  Ben- 
jamin, father  of  John  Holt  Rice,  was  living  in  Bedford 
County  then.  October  1783,  David  Rice  went  out  to  Ken- 
tucky. His  Hanover  and  Bedford  friends  were  going  there 
in  numbers.  Mr.  Rice  had  been  one  of  the  promoters  ot 
Hampden  Sidney.  At  once  on  reaching  Kentucky,  in  Novem- 
ber, 1783,  he  was  one  of  the  chief  agents  in  the  founding  of 
Transylvania  Seminary.  The  first  teacher  in  that  Seminary, 
1785,  was  James  Mitchell,  who  had  been  a  tutor  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  and  was  now  Mr.  Rice's  son-in-law.  In  1794, 
becoming  dissatisfied  with  the  management  of  Transylvania 
Seminary,  Mr.  Rice,  Judge  Wallace,  James  Blythe  and 
others  founded  Kentucky  Academy.  In  1798  the  two  schools 
were  consolidated  into  Transylvania  University  at  Lexing- 
ton. Mr.  Rice,  called  "Father  Rice"  in  his  last  years,  was 
a  missionary  of  the  west.  Dr.  Sprague  has  listed  his  rather 
numerous  published  works.  '  David  Rice, '  like  '  George  Wash- 
ington,' was  a  name  to  give  for  many  years  in  the  West. 

Lewis,  History  of  Higher  Education  in  Kentucky,  37-50. 
Sprague,  IV,  246-249. 

John  Springer 

His  father,  Carl  Springer,  of  Stockholm,  Sweden,  had  been 
kidnapped  and  landed  in  Virginia.  Growing  up,  he  heard 
of  friends  in  Delaware  and  made  his  way  thither,  settled  in 
Delaware,  near  Wilmington,  and  brought  up  a  family.  John 
Springer  (born  1744,  at  school  to  Dr.  Robert  Smith)  was 
educated  at  Princeton,  partly  through  the  generosity  of  Mr. 
Thornton,  a  rich  and  charitable  London  merchant.  John 
Springer,  it  seems,  had  been  engaged  to  come  to  Hampden 
Sidney  for  the  opening  of  the  Academy  in  1776 — he  was  of 


1776-1783]  29 

the  American  Whigs  at  Princeton,  a  Society  that  supplied 
Hampden  Sidney  with  its  early  staff — but  did  not  begin 
work  until  the  fall  of  1776.  For  indiscretions  up  the  coun- 
try in  Bedford  County,  April  18,  1777,  youthful  follies  which 
might  have  passed  unnoticed  but  which  Mr.  Springer  in  his 
contrition  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Board  himself,  the 
Board  of  Trustees  at  Hampden  Sidney  suspended  him  from 
his  office  of  tutor.  The  Trustees  commended  his  candour 
in  giving  information  against  himself  and  would  have  been 
glad  to  retain  his  services.  Perhaps  in  the  fall  of  1777  Mr. 
Springer  removed  to  North  Carolina  and  established  an 
Academy  of  his  own.  He  then  set  up  schools  in  South  Car- 
olina where  he  taught  with  distinguished  success.  His 
schools  there  were  at  White  Hall  and  at  Cambridge  (Ninety- 
six),  Abbeville  District.  In  1788,  on  the  list  of  subscribers 
to  Pattillo's  Sermon's,  Mr.  Springer  appears  as  President  of 
Cambridge  College.  He  was  ordained  a  minister  that  year 
and  settled  at  Washington,  Wilkes  County  Georgia,  the  first 
minister  in  the  upper  part  of  Georgia.  He  kept  a  school 
also  at  Washington,  and  sent  pupils  from  it  to  Princeton. 
He  advised  Moses  Waddel  to  go  to  Hampden  Sidney.  Mr. 
Springer  died  the  summer  of  1798,  from  exposure  to  the 
weather  at  the  funeral  of  Mr.  Talbot,  father  of  Governor 
Talbot.  John  Springer  was  "a  giant  in  stature  and  intel- 
lect." He  delivered  his  discourses,  which  were  unwritten, 
with  uncommon  ease  and  elegance.  His  son,  William  Greene 
Springer  (a  member  of  the  South  Carolina  Senate)  was  one 
of  the  largest  men  in  the  United  States,  weighed  about  four 
hundred  pounds. 

Stacy,  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Georgia; 
Alexander,  Princeton  College  in  the  Eighteenth  Century; 
Life  and  "Works  of  John  Springer,  Augusta,  1805. 

Charles  Wingfield 

Dr.  Foote  says  (I,  402),  "In  May,  1778,  Mr.  James  Wilson 
left  the  office  of  tutor,  and  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Charles 
Wingfield  of  the  first  class.    From  this  we  learn  the  estimate 


30  [1776-1783 

the  President  had  of  the  proficiency  of  the  advanced  classes, 
and  of  that  young  man  in  particular,  as  institutions  aim  at 
rearing  their  own  tutors  as  early  and  entirely  as  practicable. ' ' 
It  is  likely  enough  that  Charles  Wingfield,  student  and 
tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  1776-1778,  was  the  son 
of  Charles  Wingfield  of  Albemarle  County  who  died  in  1803. 
Dr.  Woods  in  his  history  of  Albemarle  County  mentions 
that  the  Wingfields  of  that  County  were  relations  of  the 
Hudsons.  There  were  Hudsons  also  settled  very  early  in 
Prince  Edward  County.  Hampden  Sidney  College  stands 
"near  the  head  of  Hudson's  Branch.' '  Charles  Wingfield, 
Jr.,  according  to  Dr.  Woods,  lived  at  "  Bellair,"  on  the 
Hardware  River  in  Albemarle,  was  a  magistrate  of  the 
county  in  1794  and  was  about  to  enter  upon  a  term  as  sheriff 
in  1819  when  he  died.  There  was  a  tradition  in  his  family 
that  he  had  been  an  Episcopal  minister.  It  would  be  inter- 
esting to  connect  Charles  Wingfield,  1778,  with  the  old 
Wingfield  Academy  established  before  1810  in  Hanover 
County  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Nelson  of  "Wingfield."  Charles 
Wingfield  of  Hanover  was  a  witness  in  1780  to  the  will  of 
Sir  John  Clay,  father  of  Henry  Clay.  Sir  John  Clay  was  a 
Baptist  minister.    His  wife  was  a  Hudson. 

Wade  Mosby 

b.  1762,  d.  after  1832.  'Was  born  in  the  County  of  Powha- 
tan, then  Cumberland,  the  family  register  of  his  age  in  pos- 
session of  his  brother  Benjamin  Mosby.  The  first  tour  of 
duty  he  performed  in  the  Revolution  was  in  or  about  the 
year  1777  or  1778  when  he  united  with  a  number  of  his 
brother  students  then  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  and 
formed  a  volunteer  company  under  John  B.  Smith,  one  of 
the  professors,  as  their  captain,  Sam'l  Venable  as  lieutenant 
and  Sam'l  Hackley  as  ensign.  They  marched  to  Williams- 
burg and  joined  the  troops  stationed  there.  This  tour  lasted 
about  six  months.  His  second  tour  was  about  six  weeks — 
under  the  same  officers  to  Petersburg  and  that  neighbor- 
hood, nor  does  he  remember  the  exact  occasion  which  in- 


1776-1783]  31 

duced  the  call  for  troops.  After  this  tour  he  quit  college. 
During  the  fall  of  1779  or  spring  of  1780  his  brother  the 
late  General  Littleberry  Mosby,  then  acting  as  a  captain, 
raised  a  volunteer  company  of  cavalry  in  which  affiant  was 
a  second  lieutenant,  and  Horatio  Turpin  first  lieutenant. 
After  the  battle  of  Camden,  he  was  a  volunteer  in  the  com- 
pany commanded  by  his  brother-in-law,  Captain  Robert 
Hughes.  At  Moore's  Ordinary  (Meherrin)  in  Prince  Ed- 
ward County,  he  was  placed  in  charge  of  a  company  him- 
self. Was  at  the  battle  of  Guilford.  Was  in  command  of 
a  troop  of  cavalry  around  Petersburg,  when  General  Phillips 
attacked  the  place  and  forced  their  retirement.  Saw  other 
miscellaneous  service  as  a  militiaman.' 

Affidavit  of  Wade  Mosby  in  Virginia  Historical  Magazine, 
XVII,  441-443. 

Samuel  W.  Venable 

Samuel  W.  Venable,  Abraham  B.  Venable  and  Richard 
N.  Venable,  (sons  of  Nathaniel  Venable,  a  very  influential 
Trustee  of  the  Academy  of  Hampden  Sidney)  were,  it  is 
pretty  certain,  students  at  the  Academy  around  the  year 
1777.  They  followed  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  to  Princeton; 
Samuel  W.  Venable  and  Abraham  B.  Venable  graduating 
there  in  1780,  and  Richard  N.  Venable  in  1782.  Samuel  W. 
Venable  was  the  first  honor  man  in  his  class,  delivering  the 
Latin  salutatory  as  was  the  Princeton  rule.  He  was  doubt- 
less in  the  army  during  1781,  then  settled  at  home  in  Prince 
Edward  County  in  business  with  his  father  as  a  merchant. 
His  home  was  at  "Springfield,"  a  farm  near  the  old  Court 
House  of  Prince  Edward  County.  He  was  a  man  of  first- 
rate  business  sense  and  energy  and  of  conspicious  wisdom 
generally.  Archibald  Alexander,  to  the  end  of  his  days, 
spoke  of  Colonel  Venable  as  ""the  most  remarkable  instance 
of  wisdom  matured  by  experience  and  observation  that  he 
had  ever  known. ' '  Col.  Samuel  W.  Venable  died  in  the  year 
1821.  He  had  been  since  1782  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  and  one  of  its  firmest  supporters. 


32  [1776-1783 

James  Daniel 

James  Daniel  of  ''Tranquillity,"  Granville  County,  North 
Carolina,  was  born  in  1762  and  died  in  1841.  He  was  a 
relation  of  Judge  William  Daniel  of  Cumberland  County, 
and  married  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Venable  of  Prince 
Edward  County.  Arguing  from  his  marriage,  and  his  inti- 
mate connection  with  the  Theological  School  at  Hampden 
Sidney,  from  the  first  broaching  of  the  plan,  it  seems  very 
likely  indeed  that  Mr.  Daniel  was  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  during  the  years  from  1776  to  1783.  His  daughter 
married  Dr.  Samuel  L.  Graham  of  Union  Seminary,  in  the 
year  1836. 

Hayden,   Virginia   Genealogies,    323. 

George  Cabell 

b.  1766,  d.  1823.  Son  of  Col.  John  Cabell  of  Buckingham 
County.  "At  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  1777-1779;  com- 
pleted his  medical  education  at  the  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, (1790?),  and  became  one  of  the  most  successful  phy- 
sicians and  surgeons  in  the  Lynchburg  section  of  Virginia. 
He  was  the  personal  friend  and  physician  of  Patrick  Henry, 
attended  him  in  his  last  illness  and  was  present  at  his  death. 
He  lived  on  his  farm,  now  a  part  of  (but  then  adjoining) 
Lynchburg,  in  the  fork  of  Blackwater  Creek  and  James 
River  known  as  'The  Point  of  Honor.'  He  married  a  daugh- 
ter of  Judge  Edmund  Winston." 

Brown,  Cabells  and  their  Kin,  241. 

Hector  Cabell 

b.  about  1768,  d.  1807.  Son  of  Col.  William  Cabell  ol 
"Union  Hill,"  Nelson  County.  "He  was  first  taught  at 
home  by  tutors ;  from  1778  to  1780  he  was  a  pupil  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  Academy;  in  1782  was  going  to  school  to  the 
Rev.  Mr.  John  Holmes  at  Col.  John  Coles'  in  Albemarle; 
from  1784  to  1787  he  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 


1776-1783]  33 

College,  and  in  1788  was  being  taught  by  Mr.  James  Mor- 
rison, the  tutor  at  'Union  Hill'."  This  is  the  exterior  schol- 
astic record  of  a  wild-oats  boy,  and  such  Hector  Cabell  is 
deemed  to  have  been.  He  died  young,  having  lived  a  rather 
wild  life.  His  widow  became  the  second  wife  of  Judge 
William  Daniel,  Sr.,  of  Lynchburg. 

Brown,  Cabells,  216. 

Joseph  Cabell,  Jr. 

b.  1762,  d.  1831.  Son  of  Col.  Joseph  Cabell  of  Amherst 
County  (later  of  Buckingham  County),  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  a  regiment  of  militia  at  Yorktown.  Joseph  Cabell, 
Jr.,  had  been  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  in 
1778  and  1779,  going  from  there  to  William  and  Mary. 
He  was  a  member  of  Phi  Beta  Kappa  at  William  and  Mary, 
and  in  1781  was  attached  to  his  father's  regiment  at  York- 
town  as  one  of  a  company  of  William  and  Mary  students. 
After  the  war,  Joseph  Cabell  settled  in  Buckingham  County, 
at  a  place  he  called  "Repton,"  on  James  River.  He  was 
the  owner  of  the  celebrated  horse  Hyder  Ali.  In  1811,  Mr. 
Cabell  sold  "Repton"  to  Governor  William  H.  Cabell  (who 
changed  the  name  to  "Montevideo"),  and  went  out  to  Ken- 
tucky. His  home  in  Kentucky  was  in  Henderson  County. 
He  was  twice  married  and  "there  are  said  to  have  been 
by  both  wives,  thirty-nine  children  in  all." 

Brown,  Cabells,  229-232. 

Landon  Cabell 

b.  1765,  d.  1834.  Son  of  Col.  William  Cabell  of  "Union 
Hill."  He  was  taught  at  home  and  elsewhere  from  1772  to 
1778,  along  with  his  brother  William  (q.  v.).  July  30,  1778 
to  1780,  he  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy,  going  to  Wil- 
liam and  Mary  College  in  March,  1780,  and  remaining  there 
until  May,  1781,  when  the  college  was  suspended.  His  father 
entered  in  his  diary:  "Jan.  25th,  1782,  Landon  set  off  on 
his  way  to  General  Watts'  to  be  inoculated.     Feb.   26th 


34  [1776-1783 

Landon  returned  from  Mr.  Watts'  in  Prince  Edward  where 
he  had  been  twice  in  order  to  get  inoculated  by  Dr.  Rose, 
who  disappointed  him  by  going  southward.  .  .  May  5th, 
1786,  my  son  Landon  set  off  on  his  way  to  North  Carolina, 
in  order  to  practice  the  law.  I  gave  him  £250  cash,  a  pair 
of  fine  horses,  a  negro  servant,  etc."  Landon  Cabell  shortly 
afterwards  disappeared.  His  friends  looked  for  him  'the 
world  over'  and  found  him  in  1792  in  Kingston,  Jamaica. 
Landon  Cabell  came  home  and  settled  down.  He  was  a 
justice  of  Amherst  and  then  of  Nelson  County  for  many 
years,  "one  of  the  noblest  men  we  ever  boasted  of  in  Vir- 
ginia; esteemed  generally  to  have  been  the  most  literary 
man  of  his  family;  a  man  of  both  brilliant  genius  and  high 
cultivation.    He  spent  the  life  of  a  hermit." 

Brown,  Cabells,  212-214. 

William  Cabell 

b.  1759,  d.  1822.  Son  of  Col.  William  Cabell  of  "Union 
Hill,"  Nelson  County.  From  1765  to  1772,  he  was  schooled 
at  home.  During  1772  and  1773,  he  went  to  school  at  Mr, 
John  Nicholas's  to  John  Johnston.  In  1774,  William  Fon- 
taine taught  a  school  at  "Union  Hill."  The  next  year  the 
Rev.  Robert  Buchan,  an  Episcopal  minister  (later  of  Staf- 
ford County),  taught  at  "Union  Hill."  Col.  William  Cabell 
entered  in  his  diary  Nov.  7,  1775,  "at  the  end  of  the  year 
I  am  to  pay  Mr.  Buchan  what  I  think  his  services  deserve, 
which  is  the  footing  he  chooses  to  be  on.  His  horse  is  to 
be  fed  with  mine."  From  August,  1777,  to  April,  1779,  Wil- 
liam Cabell,  Jr.,  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy,  in  which 
school  his  father  had  been  interested  since  March,  1775. 
From  May,  1779,  to  September,  1780,  he  was  a  student  at 
William  and  Mary  College,  and  while  there  was  treasurer 
of  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society.  He  was  under  fire  in  1781, 
as  a  major  of  militia.  He  lived  in  Nelson  County,  at  "Union 
Hill"  during  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  and  was  presiding 
Justice  of  Nelson  from  the  organization  of  the  county  to 


1776-1783]  35 

the  end  of  his  life.  He  was  a  man  of  strong  friendships. 
' 'His  mind,  naturally  vigorous,  was  embellished  by  classical 
education,  improved  by  subsequent  study,  and  strengthened 
by  experience." 

Brown,  Cabells,  190-204. 

William  Madison 

James  Madison  wrote  a  letter  to  his  father  dated  Wil- 
liamsburg, Dec.  8,  1779,  in  which  he  said,  "I  am  much  at  a 
loss  how  to  dispose  of  Willey  (youngest  of  Madison's  three 
brothers).  From  a  new  arrangement  of  the  college  here, 
nothing  is  in  the  future  to  be  taught  but  the  higher  and 
rarer  branches  of  science.  The  preliminary  studies  must 
therefore  be  pursued  in  private  schools  or  academies.  If 
the  Academy  at  Prince  Edward  is  so  far  dissolved  that  you 
think  his  return  thither  improper,  I  would  recommend  his 
being  put  under  the  instruction  of  Mr.  Maury." 

'Samuel  Stanhope  Smith,  leaving  the  "Academy  at  Prince 
Edward"  in  1779,  it  was  uncertain  for  a  while  what  might 
become  of  the  place.  So  James  Madison,  a  Trustee,  took  his 
brother  William  away  and  placed  him  at  Walker  Maury's 
school  in  Williamsburg.  In  1780,  William  Madison  became 
a  member  of  Phi  Beta  Kappa,  at  William  and  Mary  College. 
While  at  Hampden  Sidney  he  took  his  part  in  military 
affairs.  During  1781  he  was  active  as  an  officer  of  cavalry; 
1782  he  studied  law  under  Thomas  Jefferson.  He  was  in 
the  House  of  Delegates,  first  from  Culpeper,  and  then  from 
Madison  County,  during  the  period  1791-1811.  He  died  after 
1838. 

William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly,   IV,   253. 
Virginia  Biography,    (Tyler)    Vol.  II,  p.  316. 


36  [1776-1783 


FLUSH  TIMES  OF  1777 

What  a  revolutionary  time  it  was.  Late  in  1779  the  judi- 
cious young  Madison  was  writing  to  his  father  as  if  the 
Academy  at  Prince  Edward  was  about  dissolved.  And  but 
a  few  months  before,  this  is  what  Caleb  Wallace  of  Cub  Creek 
in  Charlotte  County  was  Slaying  (under  date  April  8,  1777) 
to  his  friend  and  relation,  James  Caldwell  in  New  Jersey: 
"As  all  attention  to  liberal  education  must  be  given  up  near 
the  seat  of  war,  we  think  it  incumbent  upon  us  to  spare  no 
pains  upon  the  two  academies  which  we  have  for  some  time 
been  endeavoring  to  establish  [viz.  Hampden  Sidney  and 
Liberty  Hall].  The  one  in  Prince  Edward  flourishes  beyond 
our  most  sanguine  expectations.  It  is  furnished  with  excel- 
lent Tutors,  and  the  great  number  of  students  has  become  a 
real  grievance,  so  that  it  wants  no  human  help  to  make  it  a 
miracle,  considering  its  age  and  remote  situation,  but  a  few 
thousand  pounds  to  furnish  buildings.  Although  money  has 
become  very  plenty  in  our  country,  yet  we  are  discouraged  at 
present  from  pushing  subscriptions  for  the  purpose  by  a 
popular  sentiment  which  prevails,  that  we  should  secure  our 
independence  before  we  pay  our  regards  to  the  Muses;  but 
any  one  who  takes  extensive  views  must  be  shocked  with  the 
prospect  of  our  American  people  becoming  barbarians  and 
of  making  shipwreck  in  our  government  for  want  of  skill  to 
guide  the  helm.  I  need  say  nothing  as  to  what  must  soon  be 
the  condition  of  the  church  without  a  learned  as  well  as  'a 
faithful  ministry."  Caleb  Wallace  and  Madison,  fellow  stu- 
dents at  Princeton,  were  in  1777  co-trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney.  This  letter  was  first  printed  in  the  Historical  Maga- 
zine, Boston,  Massachusetts,  vol.  I  (1857),  from  which  it  was 
taken  by  Whitsett  for  his  Life  of  Wallace  [Filson  Club  Pub- 
lications] . 


1776-1783]  37 

Aylett  Lee 

The  late  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby  said  that  Aylett  Lee,  (son 
of  Thomas  Ludwell  Lee,  1730-1778),  was,  during  the  year 
1779,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy.  This  seems 
rather  improbable,  but  we  will  give  the  statement  as  it  is 
made. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

William  Branch  Giles 

b.  1762,  d.  1830.  Son  of  William  Giles  of  Amelia  County. 
Apparently  Giles  followed  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  to  Prince- 
ton. He  was  graduated  A.  M.  at  Princeton  in  1781,  one  of 
the  first  of  a  number  of  students  from  Hampden  Sidney 
College  who  finished  their  education  at  Princeton.  Then 
studying  law  at  Williamsburg  under  Mr.  Wythe,  Giles  set- 
tled at  Petersburg  for  the  practice.  From  1790  he  was  a 
public  character,  of  great  skill  as  a  parliamentarian  and 
debater.  He  served  in  the  legislature ;  as  representative  and 
as  senator  in  Congress;  as  Governor  of  Virginia  (1827-1830), 
and  as  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1829.  "Giles  was  a 
large,  robust,  handsome  man,  whose  lightest  word  compelled 
the  attention  of  the  House.  He  had  a  very  dark  complexion, 
black  hair  worn  long,  and  intense  brown  eyes.  His  dress 
was  remarkably  plain,  in  the  style  of  Virginia  carelessness. 
His  voice  was  clear  and  nervous,  his  language  powerfully 
condensed."  (Beveridge.)  Mr.  Giles'  home  was  at  "Wig- 
wam," near  the  Appomattox  River,  in  Amelia  County. 

Brock,   Virginia   and  Virginians,    153. 
Beveridge,  Life   of  Marshall,   III,   75-76. 

Abraham  B.  Venable 

A.  B.  Venable  lost  his  life  in  1811,  at  the  burning  of  the 
theatre  in  Richmond.  That  was  a  disaster,  the  record  of 
which  reads  well:  the  women  were  taken  care  of  as  much 
as  was  possible.     Mr.  Venable  graduated  at  Princeton  in 


38  [1776-1783 

1780,  and  had  no  doubt  been  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
Academy.  He  was  a  public  man — a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives ;  for  a  short  time  a  member  of  the  United 
States  Senate,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death,  President  of 
the  Bank  of  Virginia.  From  1790  to  the  end  of  his  life  he 
was  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Judge  Peter 
Johnston  removing  from  Prince  Edward  County  in  1811,  Mr. 
Venable  in  December  of  that  year  (the  Richmond  theatre 
was  burned  on  the  26th),  had  just  completed  purchase  of 
Judge  Johnston's  land  near  Farmville,  what  was  called  for 
many  years  the  "Longwood"  estate. 

Richard  N.  Venable 

Hampden  Sidney  College  owes  a  great  deal  to  Richard 
N.  Venable.  It  would  be  impossible  to  say  how  much.  The 
old  system,  or  custom,  with  many  of  our  colleges  was  to  have 
little  or  no  endowment,  dependance  being  upon  fees  from 
students  to  pay  the  teachers,  and  contributions  from  Trus- 
tees and  other  possible  friends  to  maintain  the  plant.  There 
has  been  no  history  of  such  contributors.  Granted  the 
premise,  it  is  impossible  now  to  say  with  exactness  who  paid 
the  bills  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  during  its  first  fifty 
years.  It  is  a  safe  guess  that  Richard  N.  Venable,  his  father 
and  his  brothers,  paid  a  good  many  of  the  bills  outstanding 
on  the  part  of  the  college  from  1776  to  1838,  the  year  of  R. 
N.  Venable 's  death.  Richard  N.  Venable,  it  is  very  likely, 
was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  before  going  to  Princeton, 
where  he  graduated  in  1782.  Having  followed  law  studies 
at  William  and  Mary,  Mr.  Venable  settled  as  a  lawyer  in 
Southside  Virginia.  His  home  for  most  of  his  life  was  in 
Prince  Edward  County,  very  near  Hampden  Sidney.  He 
was  a  public  spirited  man,  interested  in  agricultural  better- 
ments, canals,  railroads,  education,  and  politics.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Convention  of  1829,  and  was  now  and  then 
in  the  legislature.  A  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College  for  more  than  forty  years,  Mr. 


1776-1783]  39 

Venable  was  careful  to  preserve  papers,  college  programmes, 
etc.  Hence  a  collection  of  invaluable  local  documents,  and 
hence  one  debt  to  this  excellent  good  friend  of  the  old  times. 

Joseph  Venable 

Son  of  James  Venable,  brother  of  Nathaniel  Venable. 
Nathaniel  and  James  Venable  were  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  Academy  at  its  origin,  and  were  charter  Trustees 
of  the  College.  Joseph  Venable  graduated  at  Princeton  in 
1783.  For  about  twenty  years  to  1812  he  was  a  Trustee 
of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Settling  in  Kentucky,  in  the 
Shelbyville  region,  he  became  judge  of  one  of  the  more 
important  courts  there. 

Andrew  Johnston 

Second  son  of  Peter  Johnston,  Sr.  Born  about  1764, 
Andrew  Johnston  lived  for  many  years  in  Prince  Edward 
County,  his  portion  of  his  father's  estate  being  the  lands 
immediately  adjoining  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Shortly 
before  1800  he  sold  to  Martin  Sailors  a  tract  of  land  corner- 
ing at  the  north  east  across  the  road  from  the  Hampden 
Sidney  Postoffice,  a  farm  the  northern  edge  of  which  is  now 
the  "Seminary  side"  of  the  village  of  Hampden  Sidney  as 
far  west  as  Osage  Lane.  Andrew  Johnston  married  a  daugh- 
ter of  Colonel  John  Nash  of  Prince  Edward  County,  and  so 
was  a  brother-in-law  of  John  Blair  Smith.  His  son,  John 
Nash  Johnston,  a  minister  of  the  Baptist  Church,  was  the 
grandfather  of  Miss  Mary  Johnston,  the  novelist. 

Charles  Johnston 

It  is  to  be  supposed  that  Charles  Johnston,  as  well  as  his 
brother  Peter,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  for  a  while. 
Charles  Johnston,  third  son  of  Peter  Johnston,  Sr.,  was  bred 
strictly  to  business,  but  it  has  been  known  for  a  long  time 
that  some  knowledge  of  Latin  is  no  bar  to  business.    Peter 


40  [1776-1783 

Johnston,  Sr.,  died  in  1786,  and  it  may  be  guessed  that  his 
son  Charles  was  then  taken  away  from  classical  studies  and 
set  to  double  entry.  At  any  rate,  Charles  Johnston's  son, 
Frederick  Johnston,  (author  of  "Old  Virginia  Clerks,"  a 
real  book),  said  of  his  father  that  he  knew  as  much  of  book- 
keeping as  any  man  well  could.  During  the  year  1788,  Mr. 
John  May  of  Petersburg,  being  interested  in  Kentucky  lands, 
and  desiring  a  clerk  to  help  him  work  out  the  vexed  titles, 
took  Charles  Johnston  into  his  employ.  They  went  out  to 
Kentucky  and  returned  safe.  Early  in  1790  they  went  out 
again  and  the  Indians  (Shawnee)  got  them,  on  the  river 
Ohio,  killed  Mr.  May  and  held  Charles  Johnston  a  captive 
for  a  long  time.  He  had  many  adventures,  as  far  north  as 
Detroit,  but  managed  to  get  home  to  Prince  Edward  County 
by  way  of  New  York.  About  1793,  being  in  Europe  on 
business,  Mr.  Johnston  met  on  board  ship  the  Duke  of  La 
Rochefoueauld-Liancourt,  and  told  him  his  story.  The  Duke 
published  such  an  odd  looking  statement  of  the  case,  spell- 
ing by  French  phonetics,  that  Mr.  Johnston  published  his 
own  narrative  in  1827,  a  rather  remarkable  book.  Charles 
Johnston  made  his  home  in  Botetourt  County.  He  was  for 
a  time  President  of  the  Farmers'  Bank  of  Lynchburg. 

Joseph  Clay 

Savannah,  March  the  29th,  1783. 
Dear  Sir: 

Though  unknown  to  you  yet  from  a  knowledge  of  your 
character  I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  send  my  son  (who  I 
expect  will  be  the  bearer  of  this)  to  your  college,  in  hopes 
of  your  admitting  him  there  and  of  his  participating  in  those 
advantages  which  your  instructions  must  afford  to  any 
youth  who  is  desirous  of  and  willing  to  avail  himself  of  them. 
.  .  .  .  It  was  my  intention  to  have  sent  him  to  you  3 
or  4  years  ago,  but  the  distresses  of  war  have  prevented. 
When  the  enemy  quitted  this  country  and  restored  it  there- 
by to  its  proper  owners,  I  had  been  an  exile,  or  rather 


1776-1783]  41 

refugee,  from  it  with  my  family  and  that  a  large  one,  near 
four  years.  This  situation  so  deranged  my  affairs  and 
straitened  my  circumstances,  as  well  as  kept  my  mind  in 
such  a  perturbed  state,  as  to  preclude  everything  that  tended 
to  domestic  concerns,  or  to  do  that  to  promote  the  education 
and  future  benefit  of  my  children  that  I  wished. 

My  son  was  part  of  the  year  1780  and  1781  with  Mr.  Smith 
of  Virginia,  brother  I  believe  to  your  son-in-law,  to  this 
gentleman  I  owe  the  greatest  obligation  for  his  very  tender 
and  polite  behavior  towards  him.  Since  that  time  he  has 
been  principally  to  the  Southward  and  without  any  oppor- 
tunity of  improving  himself.  His  inclination  as  he  informs 
me  leads  him  to  the  study  of  the  law.  ...  I  believe  you 
will  find  he  has  a  tolerable  knowledge  of  the  Latin,  some 
idea  of  Greek,  and  has  paid  some  little  attention  to  the 
mathematics  and  natural  philosophy.  The  great  loss  of  time 
he  has  suffered  makes  it  necessary  for  him  to  exert  himself 
and  to  retrieve  it  by  every  means  in  his  power.  I  have  no 
doubt  you  will  from  the  same  consideration,  put  him  in  such 
a -course  as  will  best  enable  him  to  attain  that  end.  I  care 
not  how  learned  he  is,  but  the  great  object  I  would  wish 
his  education  to  point  to,  is  the  making  a  useful  member  of 
society  either  in  a  private  or  public  station.  In  Republics 
it  may  be  every  man's  lot  to  be  called  to  the  latter  and  it 
therefore  becomes  now  our  indispensible  duty  to  bring  up 
our  youth  under  those  ideas.  I  have  relying  on  his  pru- 
dence made  him  master  of  his  finances.  I  have  frequently 
had  occasion  to  try  him  and  I  think  shall  not  have  reason 
to  repent  it,  indeed  they  [finances]  are  too  scanty  for  him 
to  be  extravagant,  tho'  I  hope  sufficient  to  answer  all  nec- 
essary purposes  and  I  shall  take  care  to  remit  him  as  regu- 
larly as  the  situation  of  the  times  will  permit.  I  do  not  mean 
or  wish  to  hurry  him  in  his  studies  more  than  his  advanced 
years  [aet.  19]  make  necessary.  My  present  intentions  are 
for  him  to  remain  at  college  as  long  as  you  may  judge  nec- 
essary and  his  inclination  may  accord. 


42  [1776-1783 

As  he  is  an  entire  stranger  in  your  part  of  the  country 
and  will  on  that  account  be  deprived  of  the  advantage  a 
friend  might  be  to  him,  in  directing  him  in  his  connections 
and  superintending  his  morals  when  abroad,  I  must  take  a 
liberty  I  have  no  right  to  assume,  that  is  to  request  the 
favour  of  you  to  give  him  your  countenance  and  advice 
generally,  I  mean  in  all  such  matters  as  may  not  properly 
belong  to  his  education,  but  at  the  same  time  be  absolutely 
necessary  for  his  welfare.  I  will  not  urge  you  on  this  head, 
as  perhaps  your  necessary  close  attention  to  business  may 
put  it  out  of  your  power  if  so  possibly  you  can  prevail  on 
some  of  the  gentlemen  under  you,  perhaps  Mr.  Smith.  .  .  . 

With  great  respect, 

Dr.  Sir, 
Your  most  obed't  hble  serv't, 

JOSEPH  CLAY. 

This  letter  has  been  given  at  large,  not  only  because  of 
its  connection  with  the  subject,  (and  with  Dr.  "Witherspoon 
and  the  Smiths),  but  because  the  letter  is  so  particularly 
good.  Then  too  this  is  a  time  also  of  reconstruction.  The 
letter  is  addressed  to  "Dr.  David  Witherspoon."  Of  course 
the  internal  evidence  of  itself  is  enough  to  show  that  Mr. 
Clay  was  writing  to  Dr.  John  Witherspoon,  President  of 
Princeton.  Mr.  Clay,  who  had  business  connections  with 
Newbern,  North  Carolina  (where  David  Witherspoon  was 
settled)  doubtless  wrote  the  address  without  thinking  twice. 

This  most  interesting  document  appears  in  Georgia  Historical 
Society  Collections,  Vol.  VIII,  (1913)  pp.  182-184,  Letters  of 
Joseph  Clay,  Merchant  of  Savannah  (and  member  of  the  Conti- 
nental Congress). 

Joseph  Clay,  Jr.,  a  student  at  the  Academy,  1780-1781,  was 
born  at  Savannah,  1764,  and  died  at  Boston,  Massachusetts, 
1811.  He  was  graduated  at  Princeton  in  1784,  with  the 
highest  honor  (proof  that  he  had  caught  up,  as  his  father  was 
sure  he  would)  ;  studied  law,  was  admitted  to  the  Savan- 
nah bar  and  became  eminent  in  his  profession.     In  1796  he 


1776-1783]  43 

was  appointed  U.  S.  District  Judge,  but  resigned  the  office 
in  1801.  In  1798  he  was  a  member  of  the  Georgia  Constitu- 
tional Convention.  He  made  a  profession  of  religion  in  1803, 
and  joined  the  Baptist  Church,  being  ordained  to  the  min- 
istry in  1804  as  assistant  pastor  to  Dr.  Henry  Holcombe  in 
Savannah.  He  was  invited  in  1807  to  the  pastorate  of  the 
first  Baptist  Church  of  Boston,  Massachusetts,  to  succeed 
Dr.  Stillman.    He  resigned  on  account  of  ill  health  in  1809. 

Appleton's  Dictionary  of  American   Biography. 

Henry  Holcombe 

It  may  be  taken  for  granted,  from  other  facts  of  Dr.  Hol- 
combe 's  life,  that  he  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney. 
He  had  relations  living  at  the  south,  and  it  may  be  that  it 
was  through  them  that  Joseph  Clay  was  sent  to  Hampden 
Sidney,  who  possibly  brought  Dr.  Holcombe  to  Savannah 
in  1799. 

Henry  Holcombe  was  born  in  Prince  Edward  County  in 
1762,  and  died  in  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  in  1826.  He 
was  a  captain  in  the  Revolutionary  army.  In  1785  he  was 
serving  as  pastor  of  the  Baptist  Church  at  Pike  Creek,  South 
Carolina,  and  was  a  delegate  to  the  South  Carolina  Consti- 
tutional Convention  of  that  period.  After  preaching  for 
a  while  at  Beaufort  (where  he  had  relations  living),  he  went 
to  Savannah  in  1799,  to  take  charge  of  the  Baptist  Church 
there.  During  his  time  at  Savannah  he  established  a  girls' 
school,  and  founded  and  edited  "The  Georgia  Analytical 
Repository."  He  received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Brown 
University  in  1810.  From  1812  to  his  death  he  was  pastor 
of  the  First  Baptist  Church  of  Philadelphia.  Dr.  Holcombe 
published  his  discourse  on  the  death  of  General  Washington, 
and  was  the  author  of  a  volume  of  "  Lectures  on  Primitive 
Theology,"  Phila.,  1822. 

Appleton's  Dictionary  of  American  Biography. 


44  [1776-1783 

Edward  Johnston 

Edward  A.  Pollard,  voluminous,  penetrating,  just,  unjust, 
and  always  able  and  interesting  writer  on  the  political  and 
military  history  of  the  Confederacy,  (himself  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney),  said  in  his  Life  of  General  Johnston  ("Lee 
and  his  Lieutenants")  that  old  Mr.  Peter  Johnston  had  placed 
all  four  of  his  sons  at  Hampden  Sidney.  The  will  of  Peter 
Johnston,  Sr.,  might  well  be  printed  in  full.  It  was  probated 
at  Prince  Edward  Court,  Dec.  18,  1786.  Mr.  Johnston  men- 
tioned his  four  sons,  Peter,  Andrew,  Charles  and  Edward. 
In  his  "Old  Virginia  Clerks,"  Frederick  Johnston,  son  of 
Charles  Johnston,  says:  "In  my  fifteenth  year  I  left  my 
father's  house  at  Botetourt  Springs,  and  with  his  consent  and 
advice  went  to  Columbia,  South  Carolina,  where  I  lived  in  a 
book  store  (conducted  by  that  elegant  scholar  and  gentleman 
Edward  William  Johnston)  for  three  years,  that  is,  until 
December,  1829.  It  was  here  that  I  came  into  daily  contact 
and  intercourse  with  the  professors  in  the  College  of  South 
Carolina,  who  were  all  fine  scholars  and  good  talkers.  The 
book  store  was  a  place  of  almost  daily  resort  for  these  and 
other  men  of  letters  then  living  in  Columbia."  William  C. 
Preston,  for  instance,  Waddy  Thompson,  McDuffie,  Hayne, 
Hammond,  &c.  We  will  suppose,  then,  that  Edward  William 
Johnston  was  Frederick  Johnston's  uncle  Edward.  At  any 
rate,  there  were  numerous  contacts  between  Southwest  Vir- 
ginia and  Columbia.  Some  of  them  might  be  explained  by  the 
presence  in  Columbia  of  Judge  Peter  Johnston's  brother. 
Edward  Johnston,  we  will  say,  took  to  books  at  his  home  in 
Prince  Edward.  His  father  left  a  set  of  the  London  Magazine 
complete  from  1732. 

John  Blair  Smith 

John  Blair  Smith  was  a  citizen  of  Virginia  about  fifteen 
years.  He  was  on  the  ground  at  the  organization  of  the 
State  of  Virginia  and  helped  to  give  the  new  State  its 
political  and  religious  complexion.     He  was  the  first  Presi- 


1776-1783]  45 

dent  of  the  College  of  Hampden  Sidney,  which  has  been  a 
powerful  factor  in  the  development  of  the  State  of  Virginia. 
Hampden  Sidney  College  and  the  State  of  Virginia  are  con- 
temporaries. 

John  Blair  Smith  was  born  in  1756,  in  Lancaster  County, 
Pennsylvania,  and  like  his  brother,  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith, 
was  educated  in  the  school  of  their  father,  at  Pequea,  on  the 
Susquehanna,  and  at  Nassau  Hall.  The  younger  Smith 
graduated  at  Princeton  in  1773,  eighteen  years  old,  receiving 
the  first  honor  in  his  class.  It  is  likely  that  he  was  an  assis- 
tant to  his  father  for  a  while,  in  the  Pequea  school,  before 
coming  to  Virginia  to  assist  his  brother  at  Hampden  Sidney. 
John  Blair  Smith  had  hardly  reached  Prince  Edward  County 
before  the  war  was  on.  He  joined  the  army  more  than  once 
before  the  surrender  at  Yorktown,  faced  few  bullets,  but 
left  a  clear  record  of  courage.  His  was  to  be  the  perplexing 
work  of  reconstruction  after  war;  and  his  interests  were 
perhaps  too  scattered  to  come  to  full  result  in  any  one 
direction. 

It  is  yet  too  early  to  know  what  the  logical  effects  of  our 
Revolution  are  to  be.  John  Blair  Smith  was  determined, 
as  far  as  in  him  lay,  to  have  Virginia  set  going  after  the 
Revolution  as  a  free  republic.  He  fought  the  bill  for  Toler- 
ation—on the  ground  that  toleration  meant  a  tolerating 
party.  He  fought  the  bill  for  a  general  assessment  to  sup- 
port religion — arguing  with  his  friend  Madison  that  religion 
should  be  quite  exempt  from  State  enactment.  He  fought 
his  old  friend  Patrick  Henry,  who  wanted  a  very  strong  local 
government,  believing  that  Patrick  Henry's  ideas  might  fix 
on  the  State  more  of  an  oligarchy  than  would  the  procedure 
of  a  federal  system.  John  Blair  Smith  fought  slavery  (but 
not  as  an  incendiary),  he  fought  the  devil,  and  he  died 
fighting  that  old  demon  of  the  yellow  fever. 

Tutor  in  the  Academy  1776  to  1779,  President  of  the 
Academy  1779  to  1783,  President  of  the  College  1783  to 
17891 — this  is  the  bare  chronology  of  John  Blair  Smith's 
active  connection  with  Hampden  Sidney.    He  and  Patrick 


46  [1776-1783 

Henry  and  General  Lawson  secured  a  college  charter  for 
the  Academy  of  Hampden  Sidney  in  1783.  Mr.  Smith  knew 
the  value  of  a  charter,  not  only  as  advertisement  but  for 
maintenance  of  the  ideal.  He  went  straight  to  Princeton 
for  his  model,  a  model  extraordinary  in  America  or  any- 
where else — and  it  must  be  allowed  that  the  old  charter  of 
Hampden  Sidney  is  a  political  instrument  of  art.  John  Blair 
Smith  did  nothing  by  halves :  but  he  attended  to  different 
things.  As  long  as  he  was  interested  in  bringing  up  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  he  succeeded  in  that  work.  Then  he  became 
interested  in  the  work  of  an  evangelist,  and  withdrew  from 
his  school  business.  As  the  posture  of  affairs  was  in  1789, 
his  choice  was  very  damaging  to  the  college.  But  it  may 
have  been  his  unescapable  duty  to  shape  the  Revolution  in 
a  priestly  way,  reaching  as  many  people  as  he  could. 

In  1789  Mr.  Smith  retired  to  a  farm  his  brother  had  bought 
on  Bush  River.  From  there  he  went  out  to  preach  in  the 
region  around.  In  1791  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  meeting  at  Philadel- 
phia. The  Pine  Street  Church  in  Philadelphia,  greatly  af- 
fected by  his  sermons  and  his  conduct,  asked  him  to  be  their 
pastor.  He  was  eminently  successful  in  his  care  of  that 
church  until  1795,  when  a  scourge  of  yellow  fever  almost 
broke  him  down — he  escaped  the  disease,  but  worked  con- 
tinually in  combating  its  progress  in  the  city.  1795,  Union 
College,  New  York,  chose  him  for  its  first  president.  He 
came  back  to  Philadelphia  and  the  Pine  Street  Church  in 
1799,  and  soon  died  (aetat.  44)  of  the  yellow  fever  of  that 
dreadful  year. 

John  Blair  Smith  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  years  of 
maturity  in  Prince  Edward  County.  As  long  as  the  people 
of  the  region  are  at  all  familiar  with  their  old  history,  his 
name  and  memory  will  have  honor. 

Dr.  Foote  has  written  a  pretty  full  account  of  John  Blair 
Smith  (Sketches  of  Virginia,  Vol.  I).  The  best  recent  state- 
ment is  that  by  Dr.  Gibbons,  History  of  Old  Pine  Street 
Church,  Philadelphia,  1905. 


JOHN   BLAIR   SMITH 


1783]  47 


Charter:  June  28,  1783 

I.  Whereas  it  is  represented  to  the  present  General  As- 
sembly that  an  Academy  has  been  founded  in  the  county 
of  Prince  Edward,  and  which  hath  been  supported  by  the 
generous  donations  of  a  few  public-spirited  citizens  for 
several  years  past;  but  that,  in  order  to  make  the  advan- 
tages arising  therefrom  more  permanent  and  diffusive,  cer- 
tain privileges  are  essentially  necessary  for  conducting  the 
same  in  future  to  greater  advantage;  and  this  Assembly, 
warmly  impressed  with  the  important  advantages  arising  to 
every  free  State  by  diffusing  useful  knowledge  amongst  its 
citizens,  and  desirous  of  giving  their  patronage  and  support 
to  such  seminaries  of  learning  as  may  appear  to  them  cal- 
culated to  promote  this  great  object: 

II.  Do  hereby  enact,  That  from  and  after  the  passage  of 
this  Act,  the  said  Academy  shall  obtain  the  name  and  be 
called  the  "College  of  Hampden  Sidney,"  and  that  the  Rev. 
John  Blair  Smith,  Patrick  Henry,  William  Cabell,  senior, 
Paul  Carrington,  Robert  Lawson,  James  Madison,  John 
Nash,  Nathaniel  Venable,  Everard  Meade,  Joel  Watkins, 
James  Venable,  Francis  Watkins,  John  Morton,  William 
Morton,  Thomas  Reade,  William  Booker,  Thomas  Scott, 
James  Allen,  Charles  Allen,  Samuel  Woodson  Venable,  Joseph 
Parke,  Richard  Poster,  Peter  Johnston,  the  Rev.  Richard 
Sankey,  the  Rev.  John  Todd,  the  Rev.  David  Rice,  the  Rev. 
Archibald  McRobert,  and  their  successors,  are  hereby  con- 
stituted a  body  politic  and  corporate,  by  the  name  of  "the 
President  and  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sydney  College,"  who 
shall  have  perpetual  succession  and  a  common  seal. 

III.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  president 
and  trustees,  or  any  seven  of  them,  shall  have  full  power 
and  authority  to  meet  at  such  times  as  they  shall  think  nec- 
essary for  the  examination  of  any  candidates  for  literary 
degrees,  and  they  are  hereby  empowered  and  authorized 
to  confer  those  degrees  on  such  students  as  in  their  opinion 
shall  merit  the  same  in  as  ample  a  manner  as  any  other 


48 


[1783 


college  in  America  can  do,  and  to  grant  testimonials  thereof 
under  their  common  seal,  signed,  by  the  president  and  five 
of  the  trustees,  at  least ;  and  that  the  president  and  trustees, 
or  any  seven  of  them,  are  hereby  authorized  and  required 
to  meet  at  said  College,  on  some  day  to  be  appointed  by  the 
president,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  October  next,  and 
then  and  there  to  elect  and  commission,  under  their  common 
seal,  such  professors  and  masters  as  they  shall  judge  neces- 
sary for  the  purpose  of  the  institution.  And  that,  in  order 
to  preserve  in  the  minds  of  the  students  that  sacred  love  and 
attachment  which  they  should  ever  bear  to  the  principles 
of  the  present  glorious  revolution,  the  greatest  care  and 
caution  shall  be  used  in  electing  such  professors  and  mas- 
ters, to  the  end  that  no  person  shall  be  so  elected  unless  the 
uniform  tenor  of  his  conduct  manifests  to  the  world  his  sin- 
cere affection  for  the  liberty  and  independence  of  the  United 
States  of  America. 


1784 


1784.  June  23.  The  Board  undertook  the  business  and 
thought  proper  to  adopt  the  following: — 

1.  The  students  shall  be  arranged  by  the  President  and 
Masters  into  three  distinct  forms  or  classes,  the  lowest  of 
which  shall  be  called  the  Sophomore  Class,  the  second  the 
Junior  Class,  and  the  highest  the  Senior  Class. 

2.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Sophomore  Class  the 
students  shall  be  acquainted  with  the  English  Grammar, 
Caesar's  Commentaries,  Sallust,  Virgil,  and  the  Roman  An- 
tiquities. 

3.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Junior  Class  the  students 
shall  be  acquainted  with  Cicero's  Orations,  Geography,  Hor- 
ace, the  Greek  Testament,  and  Arithmetic. 

4.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Senior  Class,  the  students 
shall  be  acquainted  with  Lucian,  Xenophon,  Euclid's  Ele- 
ments of  Geometry,  Trigonometry,  Mensuration,  and  Algebra. 

5.  Those  students  who  are  candidates  for  Literary  Degrees 
shall  be  acquainted  with  all  the  studies  before  recited,  as 
well  as  Longinus,  Philosophy,  History,  Cronology,  and  Crit- 
icism. 

6.  The  last  examination  shall  be  held  in  the  presence  of 
the  President  and  Trustees ;  and  those  who  pass  with  appro- 
bation shall  have  four  weeks  recess  from  business,  before 
their  degrees  are  conferred,  to  prepare  for  their  publick 
exhibition  and  then  if  no  impediment  further  be  in  the  way, 
they  shall  commence  Bachelors  of  the  Liberal  Arts  and 
Sciences. 

7.  None  shall  be  admitted  to  degrees,  however  in  other 
respects  qualified  unless  he  first  produce  a  certificate  from 
the  President  and  Steward  of  having  discharged  his  College 
expences. 


50  [1784 

8.  The  first  Tuesday  in  May  annually  shall  be  the  time  for 
conferring  degrees  upon  the  candidates,  the  order  of  which 
together  with  the  different  exercises  is  hereby  left  to  the 
direction  of  the  President  and  Masters. 

9.  Each  candidate  for  degrees  shall  pay  the  sum  of  four 
Dollars  to  the  President  upon  signing  his  diploma. 

10.  After  a  space  of  two  years,  they  who  have  taken  their 
first  degree  in  the  arts,  may  be  admitted  to  the  degree  of 
Masters. — 

The  members  of  College  in  the  three  Classes  shall  be  re- 
quired to  wear  Distinguishing  habits  of  black  at  publick 
prayers  and  at  church. 

11.  All  other  students  who  come  for  instruction  to  the 
College,  and  do  not  choose  to  go  through  a  regular  course 
of  education  may  be  permitted  to  join  any  of  the  Classes  in 
the  study  of  those  parts  of  science  which  they  wish  to  obtain 
the  knowledge  of,  and  during  such  connexion  they  shall  also 
be  required  to  wear  the  College  habit  as  other  students  do 
and  be  under  the  same  regulations  as  other  students  are. 
Any  other  description  of  students  shall  be  considered  as  in 
the  grammar  school. 


1785 


Crawford 

Extract  from  Board  minutes,  April  18,  1785,  Mr.  McRobert 
presiding:  "State  of  a  dispute  between  Mr.  Mahon,  one  of 
the  Tutors  of  the  College,  and  Mr.  Crawford,  one  of  the 
students,  which  ended  in  the  expulsion  of  Mr.  Crawford  by 
sentence  of  the  president  and  tutors.  Upon  mature  deliber- 
ation sentence  reversed."  Can  it  be  possible  that  this  difficult 
boy  was  the  Rev.  William  Crawford,  who  died  in  Louisa 
County,  1858,  eighty-six  years  old? 

William  Mahon 

William  Mahon,  perhaps  of  Virginia,  was  the  Latin  Saluta- 
torian  or  first  honor  man  at  Princeton,  class  of  1782.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Cliosophic  Society.  1784,  June  23,  he 
was  appointed  Tutor  of  the  Sophomore  and  Junior  Classes 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Drury  Lacy  at  the  same  time 
being  chosen  English  Master.  April,  1786,  after  minor  ups 
and  downs,  "about  thirty  of  the  students"  laid  before  the 
Board  a  petition  praying  for  the  dismission  of  Mr.  Mahon, 
and  Mr.  Mahon  himself  informed  the  Board  that  he  could 
no  longer  act  in  the  capacity  of  Tutor.  The  form  of  his  dis- 
mission (whether  the  record  should  show  a  resignation  or  a 
dismission)  was  left  with  President  John  Blair  Smith.  Mr. 
Mahon  settled  in  Kentucky,  as  pastor  of  New  Providence 
Church,  which  had  been  organized  in  1785  by  David  Rice. 
For  a  time  he  kept  a  classical  school  at  which  Dr.  Joshua 
Lacy  Wilson,  of  Kentucky  and  Cincinnati,  was  a  pupil.  Wil- 
liam Mahon  fell  into  bad  habits  in  Kentucky.  There  is  little 
evidence  accessible  regarding  him  beyond  the  year  1812, 
when  he  applied  to  his  Presbytery  to  be  reinstated  as  a 
minister.  His  request  was  not  granted.  Mr.  Mahon  died 
in  1818.  He  was  born  in  1760,  whether  in  Pennsylvania  or 
Virginia  is  uncertain. 

Sprague,  IV,  308. 

Alexander,  Princeton  College  in  the  18th  Century. 


1786 


David  Bell 

Very  probably  David  Bell,  whose  name  appears  on  the 
earliest  college  programme  that  has  been  preserved  (April 
Exhibition,  1786),  was  the  son  of  David  Bell  of  Buckingham 
County,  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1788  from  Bucking- 
ham County.  David  Bell  of  Buckingham  County  had  mar- 
ried a  sister  of  Archibald  Cary  of  "Ampthill." 

Grigsby,   Convention  of   1788. 

Note  also  that  Colonel  George  Bell  of  Prince  Edward  County,  who 
married  an  aunt  of  John  C.  Calhoun,  had  a  son  David  Bell  and  a  son 
Adam  Calhoun  Bell. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  set  down  in  this  place  the  items  of  the  programme 
of  1786,  a  moth-bitten  paper,  videlicet: 

James   [Blythe?]—  "The  World  Turned  Upside  Down." 

Richard  — ' '  On  Lying. ' ' 

Benjamin  Drew — ' '  Women. ' ' 

Archibald  Boiling — ' *  Coquette 's  Punishment. ' ' 

Thomas  James — "Demosthenes  to  the  Athenians." 

David  Bell — "Against  Duelling.'*      (Prize.) 

Kemp  Plummer — [We  will  assign  him  a  subject:  "The  Moth  and  the 
Paper."] 

Nash  Legrand — "Cicero  for  Milo. " 

David  Meade — ' '  Junius  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford. ' ' 

James  Carter — "Marius  to  the  Romans."   (2nd  Prize.) 

Cary  Allen — "The  Folly  of  Attempting  to  Please  Everybody." 

Henry   [Cole]   man — "Cicero  Against  Catiline." 

[William  Henry  Ha]   rrison — "Cicero's  Defence  of  his  Master." 

[Theodeiick]    McRobert — "Honour  and   Shame." 

J  [ames]  Watt  (?) — "On  Government." 

John  [Eppes?] — "Various  Characters." 

John  King — "Milton's  Description  of  Adam's  Creation." 

William  Baker — "Defence  of  Slavery." 

Clement  Read — "Against  Slavery." 

Ebenezer   McRobert — "On  Ambition." 

Comedy— "The  Miser." 

Archibald  Boiling 

No  doubt  a  son  of  Archibald  Boiling  of  Buckingham 
County,  some  record  of  whose  life  has  come  down.     It  is 


1786]  53 

said  of  Archibald  Boiling,  the  elder,  that  he  preferred  to 
keep  his  land  untouched  by  the  plough,  and  his  woods  free 
of  any  axe.  It  is  also  said  that  Mr.  Boiling  spent  a  great 
deal  of  his  time  at  the  houses  of  his  numerous  relatives ;  many 
of  whom  were  well  off  in  cultivated  lands.  Mr.  Boiling  was 
a  philosopher. 

Henry  Embra  Coleman 

Henry  E.  Coleman  has  been  placed  by  guesswork  on  the 
1786  programme.  During  the  years  1789  and  1790,  he  was 
in  the  House  of  Delegates  from  Halifax  County  where  for 
many  years  he  lived  prosperous  and  influential.  He  sent 
two  sons  to  Hampden  Sidney  College — Thomas  G.  Coleman, 
1817,  (a  member  of  the  House  of  Delegates  from  Halifax 
in  1835),  and  Ethelbert  Algernon  Coleman,  (A.  B.,  1830; 
A.  M.,  1833).  Dr.  Algernon  Coleman,  after  studying  a  year 
at  the  University  of  Virginia,  graduated  in  medicine  at  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania  in  1833.  He  practiced  for  many 
years  at  his  home  in  Halifax  County. 

Benjamin  Drew 

(1786  Programme) 

Thomas  H.  Drew  of  Cumberland  County  was  a  member 
of  the  Convention  of  1788.  Benjamin  Drew  may  have  been 
his  son. 

John  King 

(1786  Programme) 

George  King  was  in  business  near  French's  Store  (later 
Kingsville)  Prince  Edward  County.  The  tradition  is  that 
George  King  was  a  Hollander.  The  firm  of  Sailors  and 
King,  tanners,  operating  near  the  old  courthouse,  did  a  good 
business.  During  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century 
Martin  Sailors  and  George  King  owned  all  of  the  land  im- 
mediately to  the  west  and  southwest  of  the  college  land. 


54  [1786 

1 '  Westcourt, "  college  land  now,  was  a  part  of  George  King's 
farm;  and  all  of  the  college  land  south  of  the  west  road 
comes  down  from  Martin  Sailors,  who  had  bought  of  An- 
drew Johnston,  son  of  Peter  Johnston,  Sr. 

This  is  merely  an  item  of  local  business  history,  and  has  no 
connection  with  John  King  so  far  as  any  documentary  evi- 
dence goes.  It  is  plain  that  in  1786  Hampden  Sidney  College 
was  doing  well — students  were  coming  in  from  far  beyond  the 
neighborhood.  John  King  may  have  come  from  Pittsylvania 
or  Henry  County.  About  1840,  John  King  of  Henry  was  in 
the  legislature. 

John  Wayles  Eppes 

b.  1770,  d.  1823.  Son  of  Francis  Eppes  of  ' '  Eppington, " 
Chesterfield  County.,  whose  wife  was  a  half  sister  of  Martha 
(Wayles)  Skelton,  wife  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  Mr.  Jefferson 
wrote  to  his  young  connection,  July  28,  1787,  "Dear  Jack: 
The  letter  which  you  were  so  kind  as  to  write  to  me  the  22d 
of  May,  1786,  was  not  delivered  to  me  till  the  3d  of  May, 
1787,  when  it  found  me  in  the  neighborhood  of  Marseilles. 
Before  that  time  you  must  have  taken  your  degree,  as  men- 
tioned in  your  letter.  Those  public  testimonies  which  are 
earned  by  merit,  and  not  by  solicitation,  may  always  be 
accepted  without  the  imputation  of  vanity.  Of  this  nature 
is  the  degree  which  your  masters  proposed  to  confer  on  you. 
I  congratulate  you  sincerely  on  it."  John  W.  Eppes  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1794  and  practiced  in  Richmond.  He 
was  a  Representative  in  Congress  1803-1811,  1813-1815.  In 
1811  the  administration  party  induced  him  to  take  up  resi- 
dence in  Buckingham  County  in  order  to  secure  John  Ran- 
dolph's seat  in  Congress.  This  Mr.  Eppes  accomplished  in 
1813.  He  was  a  Senator  in  Congress  from  1817  to  1819, 
resigning  in  1819  on  account  of  ill  health.  He  spent  his 
last  years  in  Buckingham  County,  at  "Saratoga."  Mr. 
Eppes  married  Maria,  youngest  daughter  of  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son. She  dying  in  1804,  he  married  a  daughter  of  Willie 
Jones,  of  North  Carolina. 


1786]  55 

Shortly  after  his  return  from  his  Paris  mission,  Mr.  Jef- 
ferson spent  a  few  days  at  the  home  of  John  W.  Eppes. 
He  wrote  a  letter  to  his  friend,  William  Short,  in  Spain, 
under  date  Dec.  14,  1789,  "Eppington."  The  young  bache- 
lor, John  Eppes  had  given  him  the  news.  Mr.  Jefferson 
said:  "Mr.  Wythe  has  abandoned  the  college  of  William 
and  Mary,  disgusted  with  some  conduct  of  the  professors, 
and  perhaps  too  with  himself  for  having  suffered  himself 
to  be  too  much  irritated  with  that.  The  visitors  will  try  to 
condemn  what  gave  him  offense  and  press  him  to  return, 
otherwise  it  is  over  with  the  college. 

Mr.  Henry  at  the  present  session  made  an  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  get  a  portion  of  the  revenues  of  William  and 
Mary  transferred  to  Hampden  Sidney :  that  academy  too, 
abandoned  by  Smith,  is  going  to  nothing." 

Writings  of  Jefferson   (Ford),  V,  136;  W.  M.  Q.,  II,  274; 
Garland's  Bandolph,  I,  310. 

Nash  LeGraxid 

b.1768,  d.  1814.  Son  of  Peter  LeGrand  of  Prince  Edward 
County,  and  grandson  of  one  of  the  French  settlers  at  Mana- 
kintown  on  James  River.  Peter  LeGrand 's  wife  was  a  sis- 
ter of  John  Nash  of  "Templeton,"  Prince  Edward  County. 
Nash  LeGrand  was  sent  to  college  at  the  expense  of  his 
Uncle,  John  Nash,  the  father-in-law  of  John  Blair  Smith. 
Young  LeGrand  had  commenced  medical  studies,  but  re- 
nounced them  in  1787  for  the  ministry  of  the  church.  The 
college  steward  said  at  the  time  he  now  hoped  he  could  keep 
his  hogs  with  all  four  legs  on.  LeGrand  had  been  what  is 
called  a  wild  boy.  He  became  a  man  of  sober  character  and 
a  preacher  of  no  ordinary  power.  Henry  Pattillo  induced 
him  to  come  to  North  Carolina  for  awhile,  about  1790.  His 
most  active  work  as  a  minister  was  in  Frederick  County, 
congregations  of  Cedar  Creek  and  Opecquon.  There  he 
married  Margaret  Holmes,  sister  of  Judge  Hugh  Holmes  of 
the  Virginia  General  Court,  and  of  David  Holmes,  Governor 
of  Mississippi.     His  wife  dying  about  1809,  Mr.  LeGrand 


56  [178& 

returned  to  Southside  Virginia,  and  was  never  again  regu- 
larly a  minister.  He  married  secondly  Mrs.  Paulina  Cabell 
Read,  widow  of  Major  Edmund  Read  of  Charlotte  County, 
who  had  a  large  plantation  near  Charlotte  Courthouse.  Mr. 
LeGrand  died  in  Frederick  County,  at  the  house  of  his 
brother-in-law,  Judge  Holmes. 

Foote  I,  530-543. 

Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,  168. 

Will  of  the  elder  John  Nash  was  probated  in  1776;  with  regard  to  his 
grandson,  Nash  Legrand,  he  said — "he  is  to  be  kept  at  school  in  the 
colledge  in  this  county  till  he  arrives  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  years  and 
then  is  to  have  £100." 


Paulina  Cabell,  daughter  of  Col.  William  Cabell  of  "Union  Hill," 
was  born  in  1763  and  died  at  Charlotte  Courthouse  in  1845.  She  went 
to  school  at  home  and  was  taught  to  dance  by  Mr.  Jeter  in  1779 — his 
terms  were  £25  per  scholar  per  session.  She  was  married  to  Major  Ed- 
mund Read  in  1782.  About  the  year  1788  she  became  a  member  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  was  a  thorough  Presbyterian  to  the  end  of  her 
life,  but  still  continued  to  pay  "missionary"  visits  to  her  Episcopal 
relatives  in  Nelson  County.  Major  Eead  died  in  1802.  In  November, 
1806,  Mrs.  Read  met  the  Rev.  Nash  LeGrand  in  Winchester,  where  she 
had  gone  to  place  her  daughter  at  school.  She  married  Mr.  LeGrand  in 
1808.  Mrs.  Paulina  LeGrand  was  a  woman  of  great  business  ability 
and  very  generous.  She  was  much  shocked  to  learn  that  her  brother 
William  Cabell  had  employed  a  dancing  master  in  his  family,  but  took 
Mr.  Cabell  to  task  for  not  requiring  the  master  to  give  three  lessons  a 
day  instead  of  one.  Mrs.  LeGrand 's  homes  in  Charlotte  County  were 
headquarters  for  the  Presbyterian  clergy  and  religious  persons  of  all 
persuasions. 

Brown,  Cabells  and  Their  Kin,  209-212. 

Ebenezer  McRobert 

Doubtless  a  son  of  Archibald  McRobert,  of  Scotland  and 
Prince  Edward  County,  Charter  Trustee.  It  is  likely  that 
Ebenezer  McRobert  became  a  Presbyterian  minister.  E£e  died 
in  1817. 

Prince  Edward  County  W.  B. 

Theodorick  McRobert 

Son  of  Archibald  McRobert,  Charter  Trustee.  Theodorick 
McRobert  was  a  lawyer  of  ability.    He  was  a  member  from 


1786]  57 

Pittsylvania  County  in  the  House  of  Delegates,  1799-1800. 
He  died  in  1813.  Certain  books  of  his  were  purchased  by 
the  Union  Society,  March  19,  1813,  after  his  death.  Daniel 
Baker  married  his  daughter,  Elizabeth. 

Prince  Edward  County  W.  B. 
Life  of  Daniel  Baker,  p.   81. 

David  Meade 

b.  1770.  Son  of  David  Meade,  grandson  of  Andrew 
Meade  of  Nansemond  County,  the  emigrant.  David  Meade, 
senior,  was  for  a  time  at  Harrow  School,  under  Dr.  Thack- 
eray. His  brother,  Everard,  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  was  also  at  school  in  England,  but  apparently 
not  at  Harrow.  About  1768,  David  Meade,  Sr.,  settled  at 
"Maycox,"  a  plantation  on  the  south  side  of  James  River, 
in  Prince  George  County,  where  he  beautified  his  grounds 
most  agreeably.  In  the  year  1796  he  removed  to  Fayette 
(now  Jessamine)  County,  Kentucky.  He  called  his  place 
there,  "Chaumiere  des  Prairies/'  where  also  he  was  a  dili- 
gent improver  of  the  landscape.  His  eldest  son,  David, 
graduating  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1786,  the  next  year  took 
his  A.  M.  at  Princeton.  He  preceded  his  father  to  Kentucky, 
and  purchased  the  tract  on  which  his  father  settled.  David 
Meade,  the  younger,  died  a  bachelor,  it  is  supposed  in  Ken- 
tucky. It  is  most  likely  that  he  was  the  Captain  or  Colonel 
Meade  who  was  in  charge  of  the  escort  that  brought  Blen- 
nerhasset  to  Richmond  at  the  time  of  the  Burr  trial  in  1807. 

General  Everard  Meade  of  Amelia,  the  trustee  (and  an 
interested  one)  had  a  son  named  David.  But  the  fact  that 
David  Meade  of  Kentucky  graduated  at  Princeton  in  1787, 
is  almost  proof  that  he  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  the  year 
before. 

W.  M.  Q.,  Vol.  XIII,  Autobiography  of  David  Meade,  especi- 
ally p.   101;   Safford,  Blennerhasset  Papers. 


58  [1786 

Kemp  Plummer 

b.  1769,  d.  1826.  Son  of  Captain  William  Plummer  of 
Gloucester  County,  near  Mobjack  Bay,  a  vestryman  of  King- 
ston Parish  (now  Mathews  County).  His  father  dying  in 
1779,  his  mother  sent  him  to  college  up  the  country,  William 
and  Mary  being  rather  disorganized  then.  In  1790,  Mrs. 
Plummer  removed  to  North  Carolina,  settling  in  Warren 
County,  where  she  had  connections  of  influence.  Kemp 
Plummer  opened  a  law  office  at  Warrenton,  having  gone 
through  his  first  law  studies  under  Chancellor  Wythe  in 
Virginia.  He  showed  plenty  of  good  sense  and  skill,  and 
soon  had  a  good  practice  which  he  kept  as  long  as  he  cared 
to.  He  was  a  member  of  the  General  Assembly  (House  of 
Commons)  1794,  and  a  State  Senator  in  1815  and  1816.  It 
is  said  that  he  was  offered  the  governorship  by  the  Demo- 
cratic party  in  1835.  From  1817  to  1826,  he  was  a  Trustee 
of  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  of  which  his  grandson, 
Kemp  Plummer  Battle  was  for  many  years  President  (1876- 
1890).  Mr.  Plummer  was  a  very  hospitable  man.  He  in- 
herited a  tendency  to  gout  which  carried  him  off  early.  He 
had  a  good  wife,  was  fond  of  music,  and  was  celebrated 
locally  for  his  kindly  witticisms.  ''He  was  an  ornament  to 
his  county  and  an  honor  to  the  bar."  Nathaniel  Macon  was 
his  near  connection. 

Biographical  Sketch  in  Kaleidoscope,  1900,  by  Hon.  Kemp 
Plummer  Battle. 

Thomas  Turpin 

Doubtless  the  grandson  of  Col.  Thomas  Turpin,  of  Powha- 
tan County  (1708-1790),  whose  wife  was  Mary  Jefferson, 
daughter  of  Thomas  and  Mary  (Field)  Jefferson.  Thomas 
Turpin,  Jr.,  was  a  member  of  the  House  of  Delegates,  from 
Powhatan  County,  1786-1788,  and  a  member  of  the  Conven- 
tion of  1788. 


1786]  59 

J)r.  Foote  (I,  431-432)  tells  a  good  story  about  Patrick 
Henry  and  John  Blair  Smith.  He  says  that  John  Blair  Smith 
got  one  of  his  students  to  take  down  full  notes  of  Mr. 
Henry's  speech  at  Prince  Edward  Courthouse,  in  opposition 
to  the  proposed  Constitution  of  1789.  Shortly  after,  there 
was  speaking  at  the  College.  Mr.  Henry  came.  He  was  a 
Trustee  and  a  supporter  of  the  institution  in  every  way. 
Mr.  Smith,  from  the  full  notes  before  him,  had  written  a 
speech  in  reply  to  Mr.  Henry.  This  was  delivered  by  a 
student  as  part  of  the  exercises,  a  clever  Federalist  argu- 
ment. Patrick  Henry  was  much  annoyed,  and  it  is  said  was 
never  a  cordial  friend  of  Mr.  Smith's  afterwards.  Discretion 
sometimes  pays  well.  It  would  be  interesting  to  identity 
the  student  of  the  story  as  Thomas  Turpin,  '86,  and  then 
follow  him  into  the  Convention  of  1788.  But  Thomas  Tur- 
pin, Jr.,  seems  to  have  been  an  influential  man  in  Powhatan 
as  early  as  1777. 

James  Watt 

Early  in  1811  there  was  a  tentative  plan  among  certain 
good  people  of  Richmond  to  bring  John  Holt  Rice  to  the 
place.  In  a  letter  to  his  friend  Alexander,  Jan.  1811,  John 
Hoit  Rice  said:  ''The  plan  laid  by  Major  [Robert]  Quarles 
is,  to  subscribe  and  rent  a  house  for  an  academy,  to  the 
charge  of  which  the  minister  of  their  choice  is  to  be  invited ; 
and  he  is  to  build  up  a  church,  from  the  pew  rent  of  which 
a  salary  is  to  be  raised  for  him;  and  then  if  he  chooses  he 
may  drop  his  school.  Quarles,  Watt,  and  a  few  others  who 
are  most  deeply  interested  in  this  business  are  very  sanguine 
in  their  expectations  of  success."  Was  this  James  Watt, 
who  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1786?  Was  James 
Watt  a  brother  of  Hugh  Watt,  who  was  the  father  of  John 
Sinclair  Watt  (Hampden  Sidney,  1826)  ?  The  Scotch  mer- 
chant was  at  Richmond  before  there  was  a  Richmond. 
James  Watt  may  well  have  been  the  son  or  the  brother  of 
a  Scotch  merchant  of  Richmond. 


1787* 


William  Baker 

The  family  of  Baker  was  firmly  fixed  in  Prince  Edward 
County  a  long  time  ago,  indeed  had  settled  in  the  territory 
before  the  county  of  Prince  Edward  was  marked  off.  The 
Amelia  (later  Prince  Edward)  Bakers  were,  it  seems,  of  the 
Scotch  Presbyterian  immigration;  and  had  it  not  been  for 
the  Scotch  Presbyterians,  the  middle  Virginia  Presbyterians 
would  have  had  little  impetus,  and  Hampden  Sidney  College 
could  not  have  arisen.  Bakers  were  living  near  the  site  of 
the  village  of  Hampden  Sidney  as  early  as  1750.  In  1805 
Andrew  Baker,  (a  general  of  militia,  whose  home  was  a 
mile  or  two  from  Hampden  Sidney)  by  his  will  making 
provision  for  a  theological  library  at  Hampden  Sidney 
helped  on  very  influentially  the  establishment  of  a  theologi- 
cal seminary  in  Prince  Edward  County.  It  would  be  pleas- 
ing to  be  able  to  state  that  William  Baker,  A.  B.,  1787,  was 
a  son  of  General  Andrew  Baker.  The  Rev.  Andrew  Baker 
Davidson,  (more  than  forty  years  a  Trustee  of  Washington 
College),  was  a  nephew  of  Andrew  Baker,  and  a  great 
grandson  of  John  Thomson,  the  pioneer  Presbyterian  minis- 
ter of  Prince  Edward  County — who  wrote  his  "Explication 
of  the  Shorter  Catechism"  in  Prince  Edward  County  before 
the  upper  part  of  Amelia  had  been  set  off  as  the  county  of 
Prince  Edward. 

Clement  Read 

b.  1771.  Son  of  Col.  Isaac  Read  of  Charlotte  County,  who 
died  in  1777,  a  victim  of  disease  in  the  army  of  the  Revolu- 


*"We  called  (Bishop  Asbury  and  Dr.  Coke)  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
leg©  in  Prince  Edward.  The  outside  has  an  unwieldy,  uncommon  appear- 
ance for  a  seminary  of  learning.  What  the  inside  is  I  know  not.  About 
half  past  eleven  o'clock  we  reached  John  Finney's  in  Amelia  County, 
having  rode  about  sixty  miles." — Asbury  'a  Journal,  II,  13. 


1787]  61 

tion.  Colonel  Read's  widow  married  Thomas  Scott,  a  Char- 
ter Trustee.  Clement  Read,  (class  of  1786  :  degree  conferred 
April,  1787),  the  year  after  he  graduated,  decided  to  become 
a  minister  of  the  church.  About  1787  there  was  a  wide- 
spread interest  in  religious  concerns  in  Southside  Virginia. 
At  first  a  Presbyterian,  Mr.  Read  soon  joined  the  Republican 
Methodists,  a  sect  at  one  time  very  strong  in  Lunenburg 
County.  He  was  a  minister  of  that  sect  from  1790  to  1809, 
when  he  again  became  a  Presbyterian.  During  the  interval 
there  had  been  an  effort  made  by  the  Baptists,  Methodists, 
and  ^Presbyterians  of  the  region  to  effect  a  working  union. 
Mr.  Read  died  before  1845.  "In  the  earlier  stages  of  the 
temperance  movement,  to  the  surprise  of  many,  he  raised 
his  voice  against  some  procedures,  protesting  they  were  un- 
scriptural  and  inadmissible.  Possessed  of  an  ample  estate 
(in  Charlotte  County)  he  lived  in  great  simplicity  and  abun- 
dance, and  maintained  to  the  last  his  simplicity  of  manners, 
frankness  of  expression,  tenderness  of  feeling,  and  single- 
ness of  mind.  He  married  a  daughter  of  Col.  Thomas  Ed- 
munds of  Brunswick  County." 

Foote,  II,  573-580. 

William  Henry  Harrison 

b.  1773,  d.  1841.  His  father,  Governor  Benjamin  Harrison, 
of  "Berkeley,"  Charles  City  County,  a  signer  of  the  Declar- 
ation of  Independence,  unlike  President  Benjamin  Harrison, 
was  no  iceberg.  He  was  a  large,  jovial  man.  On  signing  the 
Declaration  of  American  Independence  it  is  said  he  re- 
marked to  Elbridge  Gerry,  a  small,  thin  man,  "Gerry,  if 
they  hang  us  for  this,  you  have  no  chance,  but  the  rope  will 
break  with  me."  William  Henry  Harrison,  "at  the  age  of 
fourteen  left  Hampden  Sidney  College,  where  he  had  re- 
mained for  about  a  year,  and  entered  an  academy  of  high 
standing  in  Southampton  County,  where  he  continued  to 
prosecute  his  studies  with  great  industry  and  success  until 
his  seventeenth  year."    He  was  a  younger  son,  and  it  may 


62  [1787 

have  been  thought  that  a  Bachelor's  degree  was  not  what 
he  needed.  William  Henry  Harrison  then  went  to  Philadel- 
phia to  study  medicine,  but  his  father  dying  in  1791,  he 
entered  the  army  and  found  the  work  that  suited  him.  He 
knew  how  to  handle  American  troops  and  how  to  conduct 
a  talk  with  the  Indians.  Soon  after  going  into  the  army  he 
married  (against  the  Judge's  wishes)  a  daughter  of  Judge 
Symmes,  great  landholder  of  North  Bend  and  the  Cincinnati 
region.  It  may  be  said  of  William  Henry  Harrison,  as  of 
other  men,  that  he  had  the  misfortune  to  be  chosen  President 
of  the  United  States. 

Montgomery,  Life  of  Major  General  Harrison,  Cleveland,  1852. 

Patrick  Shields 

b.  1773,  d.  1848.  Son  of  James  Shields,  of  Pittsylvania 
County,  of  Scotch  Irish  origin.  Patrick  Shields  was  a  class- 
mate, at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  of  William  Henry  Harri- 
son. Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  he  went  out  to  Ken- 
tucky and  thence  to  Indiana.  It  is  said  that  he  was  an  aide 
to  General  Harrison  at  the  battle  of  Tippecanoe.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Indiana  Constitutional  Convention  of  1816, 
and  for  more  than  thirty  years  was  on  the  bench.  Judge 
Shields  was  one  of  the  founders  of  Indiana.  Although  a 
slave  owner  himself,  he  was  careful  to  keep  Indiana  what 
used  to  be  called  a  "free  State."  He  died  at  New  Albany 
and  is  buried  there. 

See  biographical  sketch  in  Philosophia  Ultima,  (by  Prof.  Charles 
Woodruff  Shields  of  Princeton,  a  grandson  of  Patrick  Shields), 
New  York,  1905,  Vol.  III. 

William  Calhoun 

b.  1772,  d.  1851.  His  father,  Adam  Calhoun,  lived  about 
six  miles  from  the  college.  Young  Calhoun  went  home  every 
Saturday  and  was  required  by  his  father  to  keep  the  Sab- 
bath day  carefully.  About  1787  he  made  up  his  mind  to  be 
a  minister.    He  was  one  of  a  remarkable  group  of  students 


1787]  63 

at  that  time  who  became  ministers.  In  1792  he  went  out  as 
a  missionary  to  Kentucky,  accompanying  Carey  Allen  on 
Mr.  Allen's  second  visit  to  that  region.  Going  down  the 
Ohio  River,  their  boat  was  fired  upon  by  Indians.  In  1799 
Mr.  Calhoun  returned  to  Virginia,  settled  in  Augusta  County 
and  spent  the  rest  of  his  life  there.  His  churches  were  at 
Staunton  and  Brown's  Meeting  House  (Hebron  Church). 
For  many  years  he  kept  a  classical  school  in  Augusta.  Dr. 
Foote  represents  him  as  a  man  of  vigorous  intellect,  of  great 
self-command,  of  a  ready  mind,  fine  conversational  powers 
and  of  an  enlarged  public  spirit.  He  argued  William  Wirt 
into  an  open  acknowledgement  of  Christianity.  Mr.  Calhoun 
married  a  daughter  of  James  Waddel,  and  was  thus  a 
brother-in-law  of  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander. 

Foote  II,  235-240. 
Sprague  III,   237. 

Dr.  Eobert  Davidson,  in  his  Presbyterian  Church  in  Kentucky 
(1847),  gives  some  account  of  William  Calhoun,  of  Cary  Allen, 
John  P.  Campbell,  James^  Blythe  and  William  Mahon. 

Henry  Pattillo 

b.  1726,  d.  1801.  Born  in  Scotland  at  Balermic,  near  Dun- 
dee, "of  an  ancient  and  honorable  family."  Henry  Pattillo 
at  the  age  of  fourteen  came  to  America  with  an  elder  brother 
named  George.  His  home  for  some  years  seems  to  have  been 
in  Old  Lunenburg  somewhere  on  the  Roanoke  River.  He 
was  for  a  time  a  merchant's  clerk,  and  fell  into  a  bad  way 
of  life  during  his  counting  house  years.  Then  he  set  up  for 
a  teacher.  He  remembered  his  religious  upbringing  and 
reformed.  Towards  1751  he  was  about  to  go  to  Pennsyl- 
vania, to  prosecute  studies  fitting  him  to  be  a  minister,  but 
he  met  Samuel  Davies,  and  Mr.  Davies  offered  to  supervise 
his  education.  He  was  more  or  less  under  Mr.  Davies 's  care, 
in  Hanover  County,  from  1751  to  1757 ;  during  that  time  he 
was  married  (to  Miss  Mary  Anderson),  and  supported  him- 
self in  part  by  teaching  a  few  children.  From  1757  to  1765 
he  was  a  minister,  in  Cumberland  County,  Goochland  County 


64  [1787 

and  that  region.  In  1765  he  removed  to  Bute  County  (now 
Warren,  Franklin  and  Vance)  North  Carolina,  and  there 
remained  until  his  death,  occupied  as  a  preacher  and  teacher. 
He  died  in  Dinwiddie  County,  Virginia,  whither  he  had 
gone  on  a  missionary  excursion.  His  funeral  sermon  was 
preached  by  Drury  Lacy.  "Possessed  of  an  originality  of 
genius,  and  endowed  by  nature  with  powers  of  mind  su- 
perior to  the  common  lot  of  men,"  Henry  Pattillo  was  late 
in  maturing  and  was  always  perhaps  somewhat  of  an  im- 
provident philosopher.  He  was  fond  of  books  and  was  an 
author  (Plain  Planter's  Family  Assistant,  1787 ;  Sermons, 
etc.,  1788;  A  Geographical  Catechism,  1796).  He  had  been 
a  member  of  Congress  in  North  Carolina,  and  in  1787  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  made  him  a  Master  of  Arts,  the  first  on 
its  list  as  the  list  is. 

Spiague  III,   196. 

Sketch  in  Geographical  Catechism,  Chapel  Hill,  1909. 
The  Pattillo  Farrow  family  of  South  Carolina  are  descendants 


1788 


Dniry  Lacy 

William  Lacy,  a  farmer,  of  Chesterfield  County,  married 
Elizabeth  Rice,  cousin  to  Benjamin  Rice,  father  of  John 
Holt  Rice.  William  Lacy's  son,  Drury  Lacy,  was  born  Oct. 
5,  1758 ;  two  sons,  born  earlier,  became  ministers  of  the  Bap- 
tist Church.  At  the  age  of  ten,  Drury  Lacy,  out  to  see  the 
militia  mustered  on  the  court  green,  had  the  misfortune  to 
lose  his  left  hand.  Some  brute,  so  the  story  goes,  placed  an 
overloaded  gun  in  his  hands  and  asked  him  to  pull  the  trig- 
ger. This  accident  made  it  imperative  that  the  lad  should 
be  placed  at  school.  The  Rev.  Christopher  Macrae,  a  class- 
mate of  the  poet  Beattie's  at  Edinburgh,  was  settled  as  the 
minister  of  Littleton  Parish,  Cumberland  County,  in  1773. 
He  established  there  a  notable  school,  and  it  is  said  that 
Drury  Lacy  went  to  school  to  Mr.  Macrae  for  awhile.  Then 
his  father  died  and  he  had  to  be  taken  away  from  school. 
His  mother  dying  shortly  after,  he  was  left  to  shift  for  him- 
self. He  was  employed  by  his  neighbors  to  teach  what  was 
called  in  those  days  an  English  school,  that  is  to  say,  an 
elementary  or  primary  school.  "By  strict  attention  to  his 
duties  he  acquired  a  reputation  with  his  employers,  and  by 
assiduous  application  to  study  in  his  leisure  hours,  he  in- 
creased his  stock  of  knowledge  and  prepared  himself  for 
greater  usefulness.  By  the  time  he  was  twenty-one  years  of 
age  he  had,  without  the  aid  of  an  instructor,  become  well 
acquainted  with  geography,  English  grammar,  algebra, 
geometry  and  surveying,  and  was  employed  as  teacher  in 
the  county  of  Cumberland  in  the  family  of  Daniel  Allen, 
father  of  the  eccentric  Cary  Allen.  In  this  position  he  came 
under  the  preaching  of  John  Blair  Smith,  and  by  his  in- 
fluence was  led  to  make  a  profession  of  religion,  at  about 
the  age  of  twenty -two.  By  the  assistance  of  Mr.  Smith,  after 
he  had  taught  in  the  family  of  Mr.  Allen  about  four  years, 


66  [1788 

he  obtained  the  situation  of  teacher  in  the  family  of  Col. 
John  Nash,  who  lived  about  six  miles  from  Hampden  Sidney 
College.  Here  he  had  but  three  pupils,  and  enjoyed  the 
partial  instruction  of  Mr.  Smith  in  commencing  the  Latin 
language.  Mr.  Smith  was  a  visitor  at  the  house  of  Colonel 
Nash  [he  married  one  of  the  Colonel's  daughters]  and  de- 
voted an  hour  once  a  fortnight  to  Lacy,  to  encourage  and 
assist  him  in  his  course  of  study.  His  proficiency  in  learn- 
ing Latin  was  such  that  a  vacancy  occurring  in  the  faculty 
of  the  college,  he  was  employed  as  under  tutor,  when  in  his 
twenty-fourth  [twenty-sixth]  year.  In  this  situation  he 
prosecuted  his  studies,  and  completed  a  classical  and  scien- 
tific course  and  his  preparation  for  the  gospel  ministry." 

In  the  year  1787,  Drury  Lacy  was  licensed  by  his  Presby- 
tery to  preach.  Holding  his  office  as  a  tutor  at  the  college 
he  preached  around  in  the  neighboring  congregations — at 
Hat  Creek  and  Concord  in  Campbell  County,  and  at  Cub 
Creek  in  Charlotte  County.  He  must  have  been  a  powerful 
preacher  from  the  first,  but  was  always  unequal  both  in 
matter  and  delivery.  His  voice  was  one  of  extraordinary 
range,  could  be  heard  at  times  at  more  than  a  mile's  distance. 
He  was  perhaps  most  effective  as  a  woods  preacher,  and 
took  much  part  in  the  amazing  and  perplexing  revival  of 
1787-88  in  southern  Virginia.  He  was  a  man  conspicuous 
for  candor,  and  simplicity  of  motive  and  life.  The  summer 
of  1788,  President  Smith  took  up  residence  in  the  country, 
and  the  actual  care  of  the  institution  devolved  upon  Mr.  Lacy, 
who  was  thereupon  honored  causa  rneriti  with  the  Bachelor's 
degree.  The  next  year  John  Blair  Smith  resigned  tHe  presi- 
dency, and  Mr.  Lacy  was  appointed  Vice-President  in  charge. 
He  was  more  of  a  preacher  than  an  organizer  and  discip- 
linarian. There  were  many  difficulties  in  the  way,  and  the 
college  did  not  go  on  well.  In  1796  Mr.  Lacy  became  quite 
discouraged  and  removed  to  a  farm  he  had  bought,  a  few 
miles  north  of  the  college.  He  called  the  place  'Ararat,' 
and  lived  there  the  rest  of  his  life.  In  the  year  1789  he  had 
married  Miss  Anne  Smith,  a  daughter  of  William  Smith  of 


1788]  67 

Powhatan,  the  only  Presbyterian  in  that  county.  At  '  Ara- 
rat' Mr.  Lacy  set  up  a  school  for  boys,  of  which  he  made  a 
success.  John  Randolph  of  Roanoke,  placed  his  wards  there, 
and  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby  was  trained  there  for  Yale  College. 
Drury  Lacy  was  a  teacher  and  preacher.  He  was  celebrated 
for  his  calligraphy.  Numerous  manuscripts  of  his  that  have 
been  preserved  show  how  perfect  his  handwriting  was.  The 
loss  of  his  left  hand  (he  wore  a  silver  cap  over  the  stub  of 
the  wrist),  which  gave  his  life  its  bent,  seems  also  to  have 
made  his  right  hand  very  dexterous.  Mr.  Lacy,  living  at 
'Ararat,'  continued  active  in  the  affairs  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees.  In  1809  he 
was  moderator  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church.  He  was  often  a  delegate  from  his  Presbytery  to 
that  Assembly,  which  met  in  the  old  days  at  Philadelphia 
and  hardly  anywhere  else.  The  fall  of  1815  Mr.  Lacy  was 
at  Philadelphia  for  a  surgical  operation  (calculus).  The 
operation  was  not  successful  and  he  died  Nov.  8th,  at  the 
house  of  his  friend,  Robert  Ralston.  His  wife  had  died  in 
Virginia  a  few  days  before.  The  development  of  the  life  of 
Drury  Lacy  is  an  interesting  subject  for  contemplation. 
He  was  a  tall  man,  above  six  feet,  of  large  frame  and  well 
proportioned. 

Foote  I,  489-505. 

Gary  Allen 

b.  1767,  d.  1795.  This  remarkable  man  was  the  son  of 
Daniel  Allen  of  Cumberland  County.  In  the  congregation 
of  Samuel  Davies  in  Hanover  County  were  five  brothers  by 
the  name  of  Allen.  Soon  after  Davies  left  Virginia,  they 
all  settled  on  Great  Guinea  Creek  in  Cumberland  County, 
and  were  strong  supporters  of  the  Presbyterian  interest 
there.  Cary  Allen  was  the  eighth  child  of  Daniel  Allen,  a 
man  of  intellect,  whose  second  wife  was  Mrs.  Joanna  Hill, 
mother  of  William  Hill.  At  college  and  throughout  his 
short  life,  Cary  Allen  was  apt  at  comedy.    He  broke  up  an 


68  [1788 

audience  by  reciting  John  Gilpin,  then  something  new  off 
the  press.  Keligion  taking  hold  of  him,  he  was  for  a  time 
uncertain  whether  to  be  a  Methodist  or  a  Presbyterian.  He 
became  a  Presbyterian,  and  in  1791  went  out  as  a  missionary 
to  Kentucky.  Coming  home  to  Virginia  the  next  year  it 
was  difficult  for  people  to  believe  he  was  a  minister  when 
they  saw  him  riding  with  rifle  and  wampum  shot  pouch  a 
part  of  his  baggage.  For  several  years  he  went  back  and 
forth  to  Kentucky,  and  died  there  from  exposure  to  the 
weather  in  his  work.  Dr.  Foote's  account  of  his  eccentri- 
cities and  real  worth  is  most  interesting.  Mr.  Allen  married 
a  daughter  of  Col.  William  Fleming  of  Botetourt.  Dr. 
George  A.  Baxter  married  another  daughter  of  Col.  Flem- 
ing. 

Foote  II,  223-235. 

James  Blythe 

b.  1765,  d.  1842.  Son  of  James  Blythe  of  Mecklenburg 
County,  North  Carolina,  an  emigrant  from  Scotland.  His 
father  designed  him  for  a  learned  profession,  and  placed 
him  at  school  to  learn  Latin  and  Greek.  He  found  learning 
distasteful  at  first,  and  his  father  consented  for  him  to  quit 
school.  But  driving  a  wagon  to  Charleston  was  worse  than 
Latin  declensions,  and  the  young  Blythe  returned  to  the 
classics.  He  is  the  first  student  on  record  from  North  Caro- 
lina at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  There  he  became  con- 
firmed in  his  religious  views  and  decided  to  be  a  minister 
of  the  church.  Having  studied  theology  under  James  Hall 
of  Iredell  County,  North  Carolina,  he  went  out  to  Kentucky 
in  1791.  For  many  years  thereafter  he  was  a  preacher  and 
teacher  in  the  Lexington  region  of  Kentucky,  identified 
chiefly  with  Transylvania  University,  of  which  he  was  act- 
ing President  twelve  or  fifteen  years.  Dr.  Blythe  ?s  favorite 
studies  were  mathematics  and  natural  philosophy.  For  four 
years,  1832-1836,  he  was  President  of  South  Hanover  Col- 
lege, Indiana.    In  1815  Princeton  conferred  on  him  the  de- 


1788]  69 

gree  of  D.  D.,  and  in  1816  he  was  moderator  of  the  Presby- 
terian General  Assembly.  At  the  schism  of  1837  he  sup- 
ported the  old  school.  Dr.  Blythe  was  a  man  of  large  frame 
and  of  positive  character.  In  1812  he  began  publishing  a 
monthly  magazine,  "The  Evangelical  Record  and  Western 
Review."    This  ran  to  two  volumes. 

Sprague,  III,  591-599;  Biographical  Sketch  in  Kaleidoscope,  1900. 

Henry  Callaway 

Henry  Callaway  and  his  brother  Robert,  in  the  William 
and  Mary  catalogue,  attributed  to  Amherst  County  [note 
John  Callaway,  one  of  the  incorporators  of  Lynchburg  in 
1786],  seem  to  have  been  fond  of  going  to  college.  In  1788 
they  took  the  bachelor's  degree  at  Hampden  Sidney  College ; 
about  1790  they  were  at  the  College  of  William  and  Mary ; 
and  in  1791  they  are  listed  as  having  made  the  first  degree 
in  the  arts  at  Princeton  College.  It  is  picturesque,  the  fancy 
of  two  brothers  of  Bedford  County  or  Amherst  County,  set- 
ting out  for  college,  each  with  a  black  boy  to  tend  upon  him, 
a  party  of  four  on  horseback — going  first  to  one  college  and 
then  to  another  for  certainly  a  classical  education. 

James  Carter 

In  the  year  1777,  James  Carter  of  Prince  Edward,  sold 
about  a  thousand  acres  of  land  lying  in  that  county.  With 
very  little  to  show  for  it,  we  will  say  that  James  Carter 
(A.  B.,  1788),  was  from  Prince  Edward  County;  that  being 
an  associate  at  college  of  the  sons  of  Archibald  McRobert, 
he  married  the  daughter  of  Mr.  McRobert;  and  during  the 
first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century  placed  two  or  three 
of  his  sons  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  It  is  not  impossi- 
ble that  Theodoric  A.  Carter,  1818  (this  name  is  a  conjecture 
in  lieu  of  Thomas  A.  Carter  heretofore  listed),  was  thus  the 
grandson  of  Archibald  McRobert.  It  is  not  impossible  that 
Archibald  Carter,  1816,  was  the  same  as  Theodoric  A.  Carter. 
From  writings  in  a  book  that  belonged  to  Dr.  David  Flour- 


70  [1788 

noy,  of  '  Chantilly, '  Prince  Edward  County,  it  appears  that 
Theodoric  A.  Carter  was  making  a  signature  in  1821.  At 
the  time  he  may  have  been  studying  medicine  under  Dr. 
Flournoy.  It  is  known  that  one  of  the  Rev.  Archibald 
McRobert's  daughters  married  a  Mr.  Carter.  But  it  is 
granted  that  the  categorical  imperative  is  not  the  same  for 
the  romancer  as  for  the  annalist. 

John  Sankey 

Richard  Sankey,  an  Ulsterman,  was  for  a  good  many  years 
a  minister  in  Pennsylvania  before  1757,  when  with  a  great 
part  of  his  congregation,  he  settled  on  Buffalo  Creek,  in 
Prince  Edward  County.  Buffalo  Church  is  one  of  the  oldest 
churches  in  the  Prince  Edward  region,  and  near  the  church 
for  a  long  time  was  a  trading  place  called  '  Londonderry. ' 
Richard  Sankey  lived  to  be  an  old  man,  dying  a  few  months 
before  the  organization  of  the  Synod  of  Virginia  in  1788 — 
he  had  been  designated  the  first  moderator.  In  1775,  Rich- 
ard Sankey  was  of  the  first  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  Academy.  It  is  recorded  that  he  liked  to  use  Hebrew 
in  the  pulpit.  He  was  the  son-in-law  of  the  Rev.  John  Thom- 
son (no-compromise  Old  School  man),  who  while  settled  in 
the  territory  of  Prince  Edward  County,  composed  in  1748 
the  earliest  book  to  come  out  of  that  territory,  "An  Expli- 
cation of  the  Shorter  Catechism."  John  Sankey,  the  son 
of  Richard  Sankey  [see  Prince  Edward  County  Will  Books] 
was  likely  a  minister  himself.  It  is  probable  he  spent  his 
life  in  the  South.  In  1827  Richard  T[homson]  Sankey  of 
Georgia  graduated  in  medicine  at  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania. 

James  Charles 

Dr.  Foote  (II,  429)  says  of  the  great  revival  of  1787-88:— 
"Mr.  Charles,  leaving  the  college  without  making  a  pro- 
fession [of  religion],  afterwards  became  a  minister  in  the 
Episcopal  Church."      [Sketches  of  Virginia,  I,  429.]      The 


1788]  71 

name  Charles  seems  to  have  been  fixed  at  this  time  in  York 
County.  But  it  is  not  impossible  that  Dr.  Foote  meant  to 
write  in  a  more  usual  family  name  after  Charles. 

However,  we  will  guess  that  Dr.  Foote  Js  Mr.  Charles  was  the  Rev. 
James  Charles,  a  Methodist  minister  in  1815  at  Burke's  Garden,  Tazewell 
County,  and  described  by  Dr.  McAnally  as  "a  man  of  much  more  than 
ordinary  talent,  of  deep  and  fervent  piety,  graceful  manners  and  digni- 
fied deportment." 

Life  of  William  Patton.     St.  Louis,  1858,  p.  21. 

Abner  Early 

Dr.  Foote  (II,  429)  says  of  the  period  1787-88,  "Mr. 
Abner  Early,  without  uniting  with  the  church  at  college, 
afterwards  became  a  minister  in  the  Methodist  Church." 
Henry  and  Robert  Callaway  were  at  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1788.  It  is  probable  that  Abner  Early  came  to  college  with 
the  Callaways.  The  Earlys  and  the  Callaways  were  associated 
in  the  iron  business  in  Bedford  County.  Jubal  Early  estab- 
lished his  son-in-law,  James  Callaway,  at  one  of  the  first  iron 
furnaces  in  the  Bedford  region. 

Abner  Early,  son  of  Colonel  Jeremiah  Early,  of  Bedford 
County,  was  born  in  1767  and  died  about  1837.  He  was  a 
minister  of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  lived  on  the  planta- 
tion which  had  been  the  home  of  his  father.  Col.  Jeremiah 
Early  was  interested  in  the  Washington  Iron  "Works,  in 
Henry  County. 

See  Family  of  Early,  by  Miss  E.  H.  Early,  Lynchburg,  1920,  p.  135. 

William  Spencer 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  religious  complexions  of  Vir- 
ginia, shortly  after  the  Revolution.  Dr.  William  Hill,  in  his 
journal  of  missionary  tours  about  1791,  gives  some  indica- 
tion of  the  critical  posture  of  affairs.  In  Lancaster  County 
he  found  the  remains  of  James  Waddel's  Presbyterian  con- 
gregation among  the  Carters,  Gordons,  Seldens,  etc.  The 
Methodists  then  in  Lancaster  were  very  cordial  to  the  Pres- 


72  [1788 

byterians  in  partibus.  At  Williamsburg,  although  bearing 
a  letter  of  introduction  from  Col.  Gordon,  the  missionary 
could  hardly  find  lodgment,  even  at  John  Holt's,  a  connec- 
tion of  Davies,  and  a  relation  of  John  Holt  Rice.  Hearing 
of  a  Methodist  quarterly  meeting  in  James  City  County, 
young  Mr.  Hill  rode  over  for  attendance.  The  preachers  in 
charge  expressed  the  greatest  aversion  to  the  Calvinistic 
creed.  There  were  two  youthful  Baptist  ministers  present, 
Robert  Baylor  Semple,  and  Andrew  Broaddus.  They  pro- 
moted there  a  meeting  of  their  own.  Keeping  on  towards 
Surry  County,  Mr.  Hill  met  his  old  college  mate,  William 
Spencer,  'who  had  professed  conversion  a  little  before  the 
revival  in  the  college,  and  had  left  his  studies  and  com- 
menced preaching  as  a  circuit  rider/  Spencer  refused  to 
recommend  Hill  to  any  of  the  Methodists  of  Petersburg,  and 
added  that  no  Methodists  would  be  likely  to  ask  him  to 
preach,  since  his  preaching  had  made  a  bad  impression.  At 
Chinquepin  Church  in  Amelia  County,  Mr.  James  Craig,  an 
Episcopal  minister,  appeared  and  insisted  on  preaching. 
Nobody  else  being  willing  to  make  any  responses  at  the 
service,  Hill  agreed  to  make  them  himself. 

Foote,  II,  182-185. 

Stephen  Trent 

Dr.  Foote  says  (II,  429)  Stephen  Trent  of  Cumberland 
County  became  an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  after 
leaving  Hampden  Sidney  College,  about  the  year  1788. 

Jeremiah  Lawson 

General  Robert  Lawson  of  Prince  Edward  County,  such 
an  influential  friend  to  Hampden  Sidney  College  at  its  origin, 
had  a  son  named  Jeremiah,  whom  we  will  suppose  he  placed 
at  college  at  Hampden  Sidney  during  the  period  of  the 
Methodist  influence.  Jeremiah  Lawson  settled  in  Kentucky 
while  Kentucky  was  still  legally  attached  to  Virginia  (i.e. 
before  1792),  and  immediately  upon  the  transfer  of  Louis- 


1788]  73 

iana  from  France  removed  to  St.  Louis.  He  seems  to  have 
been  married  at  that  time,  1804,  since  the  statement  is  made 
that  waiting  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  for  a  barge  to  take 
him  and  his  family  up  to  St.  Louis  he  saw  the  last  of  the 
French  troops  at  that  post.  Jeremiah  Lawson  was  a  Metho- 
dist preacher,  very  well  known  in  Kentucky,  Missouri  and 
Ohio.  His  son,  Leonidas  Moreau  Lawson  [1812-1864]  was 
a  physician  of  note,  professor  in  the  Transylvania  Medical 
School,  in  the  Cincinnati  Medical  School  and  founder  and 
editor  of  the  Western  Lancet  [1842-1864].  The  Rev.  Jere- 
miah Lawson 's  son,  William  Lawson,  of  Howard  County, 
Missouri,  was  the  father  of  Leonidas  Moreau  Lawson,  finan- 
cier, of  Missouri  and  New  York,  member  of  the  firm  of 
Donnell,  Lawson  &  Co.,  which  he  represented  in  London  for 
some  time,  returning  to  New  York  in  1878 ;  either  he  or  a 
son  of  the  same  name  was  living  in  New  York  in  1907. 

History  of  Transylvania  Medical  School:  Filson  Club  Publi- 
cations; White's  Cyclopaedia  of  Am.  Biography,  II,  120; 
Lamb's  Cyclopaedia  of  Am.  Biography. 


When  Cornwallis  invaded  Virginia,  the  services  of  the 
college  were  for  a  time  suspended  [during  the  period  March 
to  October,  1781].  After  the  capture  of  the  invading  general 
at  York,  the  men  returned  to  their  homes,  college  studies 
were  resumed,  and  the  congregations  of  the  neighborhood 
became  more  regular.  'The  demoralizing  effects  of  the  war,' 
said  Dr.  Wm.  Hill,  'left  religion  in  a  most  deplorable  condi- 
tion. The  Sabbath  had  been  almost  forgotten,  and  public 
morals  sadly  deteriorated.  But  Hampden  Sidney  College 
appeared  to  revive.  President  Smith  entered  de  novo  upon 
his  various  and  responsible  duties.  The  number  of  students 
continued  to  increase,  until  the  rooms  in  college  were  as  full 
as  they  well  could  contain. ' 

Presbytery  considering  that  its  Board  of  Trustees  had 
failed  to  discharge  its  duty,  (no  recorded  meetings  for  five 
years  after  1777),  largely  increased  the  numbers  of  its  Board 


74  [1788 

in  1782,  a  few  months  before  the  charter.  Sept.  22,  1786, 
the  first  regular  college  class,  receiving  degrees  under  the 
charter,  was  graduated — 'eight  candidates  for  the  first  de- 
gree in  the  arts,  having  stood  an  examination  upon  a  variety 
of  subjects  before  the  Board.'  John  Blair  Smith's  impres- 
sive manner  of  preaching  drew  after  him  large  audiences, 
but  with  little  apparent  effect  until  about  the  year  1787. 
'He  was  always  a  very  attractive  and  popular  preacher.' 
said  William  Hill,  'and  drew  crowds  after  him,  for  it  was 
one  of  his  peculiar  properties  to  put  out  his  strength  in 
everything  he  undertook  and  to  do  nothing  by  halves.  But 
the  troubles  of  the  Revolutionary  war  were  waxing  worse 
and  worse,  and  were  drawing  nigher  and  nigher.  The 
British  army  was  for  a  time  in  the  midst  of  his  people, 
committing  desperate  outrages,  and  at  length  caused  a  sus- 
pension of  public  worship  in  his  congregation,  and  broke 
up  entirely  the  business  of  the  college.'  However,  the  busi- 
ness of  the  college  had  been  well  re-established  by  the  year 
1787.  About  that  time  the  Methodists  and  Baptists  began 
their  work  of  revival  in  Southside  Virginia.  President 
Smith  himself  was  led  to  hold  more  frequent  meetings,  es- 
pecially in  the  congregation  of  Briery.  At  the  college  dur- 
ing 1787  there  were  sixty  to  eighty  students,  'not  one  known 
to  be  any  way  serious  and  thoughtful  upon  the  subject  of 
religion;  they  were  generally  very  vicious  and  profane  and 
treated  religion  and  religious  persons  with  great  contempt 
and  ridicule,  though  attentive  to  their  studies  and  the  ac- 
quisition of  knowledge. '  The  Methodists  were  also  working 
in  Cumberland  County.  Cary  Allen  and  William  Hill,  half 
brothers,  went  to  their  home  in  Cumberland  on  vacation, 
and  both  became  much  affected  by  the  revival  that  was 
going  on.  Upon  Allen's  return  to  college,  President  Smith, 
fearful  that  the  young  man's  religion  was  unstable,  put  him 
through  the  most  rigid  examinations.  'Cary  Allen  was  the 
first  student  who  made  any  public  pretensions  to  religion 
in  college.'  Then  Allen,  Blythe,  William  Hill,  and  Clement 
Read  began  to  hold  prayer  meetings  in  the  woods  and  on 


1788]  75 

rainy  afternoons  in  their  rooms.  They  were  overheard  by 
some  of  the  students  and  a  riot  followed.  'Information  of 
the  riot  was  given  to  President  Smith.  In  the  evening  the 
college  was  rung  to  prayers.  When  the  prayers  were  ended, 
Mr.  Smith  demanded  the  cause  of  the  riot,  and  who  were 
the  leaders  in  it.  Some  of  the  most  prominent  leaders 
stepped  forward  and  said  there  were  some  of  the  students 
who  had  shut  themselves  up  in  one  of  the  rooms  in  college, 
and  began  singing  and  praying  and  carrying  on  like  the 
Methodists,  and  they  were  determined  to  break  it  up.'  The 
four  had  nothing  to  say.  They  were  not  certain  that  they 
were  justifiable  in  introducing  such  exercises  into  college 
without  first  obtaining  permission.  President  Smith  reas- 
sured them  on  that  score.  They  held  their  meetings  in  his 
parlor,  then  in  the  college  hall,  and  a  conspicious  revival 
began  in  the  neighborhood  and  at  the  college. 

President  Smith  became  more  and  more  interested  in  his 
evangelistic  work.  The  summer  of  1788  he  removed  to  his 
farm  in  the  neighborhood.  The  next  year  he  gave  up  all 
connection  with  the  college,  except  his  office  of  Trustee. 
'The  situation  of  Mr.  Lacy,  Vice-President,  was  laborious, 
difficult  and  unenviable.  In  the  want  of  permanent  funds, 
the  income  of  the  college  was  not  adequate  to  sustain  a  suf- 
ficient number  of  qualified  teachers.  The  support  of  the 
nearby  congregations,  given  to  the  teachers  for  their  minis- 
terial services,  was  necessary  in  order  to  preserve  the  ap- 
pearance of  a  college.  The  ardour  with  which  the  com- 
munity had  embarked  in  the  cause  of  education  was  some- 
what abated;  and  political  feeling  [Constitution  and  anti- 
Constitution]  which  at  that  time  entered  into  everything  of 
a  social  nature,  had  an  influence  unfavorable  to  the  popu- 
larity of  the  college ;  and  even  the  revival  of  religion  of 
1787-88  was  made  to  act  unfavorably  on  some  parts  of  the 
community  around,  as  the  officers  of  the  college  were  ac- 
cused of  sectarianism.  The  attention  of  Synod  also  was 
more  particularly  turned  to  the  school  at  Lexington  as  the 
place  where  theological  students  should  be  trained  for  the 


76  [1788 

ministry.  The  efforts  in  1792  to  translate  William  Graham 
from  Lexington  to  Hampden  Sidney  failed;  and  the  tide  of 
favour  set  for  Liberty  Hall  at  Lexington.  Some  things  had 
occurred,  not  of  permanent  interest,  that  for  a  time  turned 
away  part  of  Hanover  Presbytery  from  their  own  college. 
As  these  things  were  personal  and  transient,  and  connected 
with  the  President's  resigning,  they  need  not  be  perpetuated 
in  history.  The  consequence  was  that  Hampden  Sidney  *or 
a  time  languished.' 

Foote  I,  405,  406,  411,  412,  413,  414,  497,  498. 


1789 


George  Cabell 

b.  1774,  d.  1827.  Brother  of  William  H.  Cabell,  governor, 
etc.  Studied  medicine  under  his  cousin,  Dr.  George  Cabell 
of  Lynchburg,  and  completed  his  medical  education  at  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania.  He  was  known  as  Dr.  George 
Cabell,  Jr.,  to  distinguish  him  from  his  cousin.  His  home 
was  at  'Bon  Aire'  in  Amherst  County,  where  he  practiced 
his  profession  with  success  until  1817,  removing  then  to 
Richmond. 

Brown,  Cabells,  258. 

William  H.  Cabell 

In  1846  Judge  Cabell  wrote:  "I  was  born  Dec.  16,  1772, 
at  'Boston  Hill'  in  Cumberland  County,  the  residence  of 
my  maternal  grandfather,  Col.  George  Carrington,  whose 
wife  was  a  daughter  of  Major  William  Mayo  who  lived  in 
that  part  of  old  Goochland  which  is  now  Powhatan  County. 
From  February  or  March,  1784,  to  the  next  Christmas,  I 
went  to  school  at  'Boston  Hill,'  to  Mr.  James  Wilson,  where 
I  commenced  the  study  of  the  Latin  language.  In  the  month 
of  February  or  March,  1785,  I  went  to  Hampden  Sidney 
College  where  I  continued  until  1789.  In  the  month  of 
February  or  March  I  went  to  William  and  Mary  College, 
where  I  continued  until  July,  1793.  In  the  fall  of  1793  I 
went  to  Richmond  to  complete  the  study  of  the  law.  In 
July,  1794,  I  commenced  the  practice  of  the  law.  I  was 
elected  to  the  Assembly  in  the  spring  of  1796.  I  was  also 
in  the  famous  Assembly  of  1798  and  voted  for  the  famous 
resolutions  of  that  session.  I  was  a  member  of  the  Assembly 
in  the  years  1802,  1803,  and  1804.  In  April,  1805,  I  was 
again  elected  to  the  Assembly  and  attended  as  a  member, 
December,  1805,  but  within  a  few  days  after  the  commence- 


78  [1789 

ment  of  the  session,  I  was  elected  governor  [by  the  Legis- 
lature] in  which  office  I  continued  for  three  years,  till 
December,  1808.' '  Gov.  Cabell  was  thirty-six  years  old  at 
the  end  of  his  term.  For  the  rest  of  his  life  he  was  a  Judge, 
either  of  the  general  court  or  the  court  of  appeals.  He  was 
President  of  the  latter  court  from  1842  to  1851,  dying  in 
1853.  The  H.  in  his  name  was  a  mere  letter.  He  was  a 
learned,  just,  and  kindly  Judge. 

Brown,  Cabells,  249-255. 

Dabney  Carr 

b.  1773,  d.  1837.  His  father,  Dabney  Carr  of  Louisa  County, 
married  a  sister  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  dying  at  the  age  of 
thirty.  It  is  claimed  that  as  a  member  of  the  House  of  Bur- 
gesses he  presented  the  resolutions  for  the  appointment  of 
Committees  of  Correspondence  throughout  the  colonies. 
Dabney  Carr,  Jr.,  after  leaving  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
studied  law  at  home  with  Mr.  Jefferson,  and  settled  in  Albe- 
marle County.  There  he  was  intimately  associated  with 
William  Wirt,  who  was  then  practising  in  Albemarle.  Dab- 
ney Carr  was  appointed  Chancellor  of  the  Winchester  Dis- 
trict in  1811,  and  in  1824  was  made  a  Judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Appeals.  His  decisions  were  noted  for  profundity 
of  investigation.  Judge  Carr's  grave  is  in  Shockoe  Ceme- 
tery, Richmond. 

Tyler,  Virginia  Biography,  II,  63. 

William  Hill 

b.  1769,  d.  1852.  Son  of  Joseph  and  Joanna  (Read)  Hill 
of  Cumberland  County.  His  father  dying  in  1774,  his  mother 
married  Mr.  Daniel  Allen,  father  of  Gary  Allen.  Young  Hill 
was  taught  at  home,  by  Drury  Lacy,  tutor  for  three  years 
in  Daniel  Allen's  family.  The  Aliens  were  Presbyterians; 
the  Hills  were  rather  militant  non-conformists  after  the 
Revolution.     William  Hill's  guardian  was  his  father's  bro- 


1789]  79 

ther,  who  sent  his  ward  to  college  intending  him  to  study 
law.  At  college,  young  Hill  decided  to  be  a  preacher.  He 
was  one  of  the  group  powerfully  influenced  by  the  Great 
Revival  of  1787  in  Southside  Virginia.  His  uncle,  threaten- 
ing to  cast  him  off,  he  was  given  a  home  by  Major  Edmund 
Read  of  Charlotte  County.  While  living  at  Major  Read's 
he  studied  theology  under  the  direction  of  John  Blair  Smith. 
After  two  very  interesting  years  as  a  missionary  in  eastern 
and  western  Virginia,  William  Hill  settled  in  the  Lower 
Valley,  at  Charlestown,  1792,  and  then,  1800,  at  Winchester. 
He  was  a  teacher  and  preacher  of  mark  at  both  places. 
About  1834,  Dr.  Hill  became  much  involved  in  the  disputes 
of  New  School  and  Old  School  Presbyterianism.  He  was  the 
foremost  supporter  in  Virginia  of  the  New  School,  a  rather 
turbulent  man  in  argument  and  a  powerful  writer  (see  his 
"  History  of  American  Presbyterianism/'  Washington, 
1839).  Dr.  Hill  died  at  the  home  of  his  son-in-law,  Mr. 
Tidball,  in  Winchester.  He  had  married  in  1792  a  daughter 
of  Col.  William  Morton  of  Charlotte  County.  Some  of  his 
clerical  brethren  used  to  twit  him  about  his  D.  D.,  conferred 
by  Dartmouth  in  1816,  when  that  college  was  in  a  legal 
tangle.  Dr.  Hill  in  his  later  years  was  a  man  of  extraor- 
dinary appearance,  magnificent.  He  was  fond  of  a  joke 
and  had  a  fiery  temper,  conspicuous  among  the  old  breed  of 
upstanding  men  of  middle  Virginia  shaped  by  the  eighteenth 
century.  Dr.  Foote,  his  biographer,  has  set  forth  his  char- 
acter at  large. 

Foote  II,  169-190;   310-319;   463-480. 
Sprague  III,  563ff. 

David  Wiley 

David  Wiley,  chief  organizer  of  the  Union  Society  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  was  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth. 
He  went  to  Princeton  College,  and  graduated  there  in  Sep- 
tember, 1788.  After  a  month's  vacation  he  was  brought  to 
Hampden  Sidney  by  John  Blair  Smith,  November  18,  1788, 
to  take  up  work  as  Tutor.     He  continued  in  this  work  for 


80 


[1789 


two  years,  leaving  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  October,  1790. 
David  Wiley  belonged  to  the  Cliosophic  Society  at  Prince- 
ton. It  was  customary  for  Princeton  men  who  were  connected 
with  Hampden  Sidney  to  be  members  of  the  Whig  Society. 
Anyhow,  Mr.  Wiley  effected  the  organization  of  a  new  liter- 
ary society  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Whether  the  Union 
Society  was  a  coalition  club,  exactly  what  it  was  at  its  be- 
ginning in  1789  is  not  known.  It  was  influential  in  the 
community  at  least,  and  David  Wiley  was  the  chief  sponsor. 
Similarly  when  Mr.  Cushing  came  to  Hampden  Sidney  in 
1817  he  interested  himself  in  the  welfare  of  the  Philan- 
thropic Society. 

For  some  ten  years  until  1800,  Mr.  Wiley  was  a  minister 
in  Huntington  Presbytery,  Pennsylvania.  He  then  settled 
in  the  District  of  Columbia,  at  Georgetown,  as  principal 
of  the  Columbian  Academy,  which  like  the  Columbian  Li- 
brary in  the  Ten  Miles  Square,  had  been  founded  by  Dr. 
Balch  of  Georgetown,  Presbyterian  pope  of  all  that  district 
for  many  years.  David  Wiley  was  principal  of  the  Colum- 
bian Academy,  librarian  of  the  Columbian  Library,  post- 
master, merchant  miller,  superintendent  of  a  turnpike  and 
secretary  of  the  Columbian  Agricultural  Society.  This  so- 
ciety, an  outgrowth  of  the  Arlington  Sheep  Shearings,  was 
a  very  active  club,  with  which  the  war  of  1812  interfered 
a  good  deal.  Mr.  Wiley  died  in  1813,  in  North  Carolina 
where  he  was  in  charge  of  a  government  survey.  Certainly 
for  two  years  after  April,  1810,  Mr.  Wiley  was  editor  of  the 
Columbian  Society's  journal,  called  "  The  Agricultural 
Museum."  Apparently  David  Wiley  was  the  editor  of  the 
first  distinct  farm  journal  in  America.  Plainly  he  had  the 
organizing  faculty.  Who  knows  but  one  day  the  Union 
Society  will  be  doing  philanthropic  work  with  score  cards 
and  Medley  seeds,  silos  and  swine  husbandry?  And  even 
if  it  does  not  so,  its  founder  is  worth  celebration. 


See  Hampden  Sidney  Magazine,  October,  1916. 

Mrs.  Anne  Beeve  Aldrich,  in  Washington  Star,  April  1,  1893. 


1789]  81 

James  Cocke 

Very  likely  the  son  of  Chastain  Cocke,  of  "Clover  Pas- 
ture," Powhatan  County.  James  Cocke  of  Powhatan  was 
born  in  1770  and  died  in  1825.  (Dupuy  Genealogy,  p.  250.) 
It  would  be  interesting  to  identify  James  Cocke,  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  Union  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1789, 
with  Dr.  James  Cocke  (d.  1813),  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
University  of  Maryland  Medical  School  in  1807. 


"  February  1789:  Miss  Margaret  Jordan  Cabell  was  in  attendance 
upon  a  society  meeting  at  Hampden  Sidney."  [Brown,  Cabells,  etc., 
p.  217.]  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  Miss  Cabell  did  not  instruct  the 
annalist  to  say  what  was  the  name  of  this  society. 

"Tuesday,  September  22,  1789:  Messrs.  David  Wiley,  James  Cocke, 
William  Williamson,  John  A.  Morton,  Henry  A.  Watkins,  William  Wat- 
kins,  Edward  Ward,  and  Blake  B.  Woodson  met  in  Mr.  David  Wiley's 
room  in  order  to  enter  upon  a  plan  for  forming  a  society  in  this  college 
for  the  promotion  of  literature  and  friendship.  That  they  might  act 
with  the  more  steadiness  and  reliance  on  each  other's  conduct  they  made 
and  subscribed  [a  declaration]  .  .  .  This  done,  a  committee  con- 
sisting of  Messrs.  David  Wiley,  John  Morton,  and  William  Williamson 
was  appointed  to  draw  up  a  system  of  laws  for  the  regulation  of  the 
society  to  be  submitted  for  their  consideration  on  the  first  Friday  of 
next  session.  Mr.  James  Cocke  appointed  to  preside  at  the  first  meeting 
(Nov.  6,  1789),  and  Mr.  James  Jones  to  officiate  as  clerk.' '  [Minute 
Book.] 

William  Archer  Cocke 

b.  1771,  d.  1844.  Brother  of  James  Cocke.  William 
Archer  Cocke  lived  in  Powhatan  County.  His  grandson, 
William  Archer  Cocke,  (author  of  a  "Constitutional  History 
of  the  United  States  to  the  Close  of  Jackson's  Administra- 
tion." Philadelphia,  2  vols.,  vol.  I,  1858;  attorney  general 
of  Florida),  was,  it  is  likely,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  in  1845. 

Edward  Henry 

Son  of  Patrick  Henry  by  his  first  marriage.  Edward 
Henry  died  young,  in  1794. 


82  [1789 

Abram  Sandifer 

John  Sandifer  of  Charlotte  County,  died  in  1804.  It  is 
likely  that  Abram  Sandifer  (clerk  of  the  Union  Society  in 
1790)  went  out  to  Tennessee.  Abram  Sandifer  Hoggatt,  of 
Tennessee,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 

1818. 

Henry  A.  Watkins 

Son  of  Col.  Joel  Watkins  of  '  Woodfork,'  Charlotte  County, 
a  charter  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Captain 
Henry  A.  Watkins,  a  soldier  in  the  war  of  1812,  was  also 
for  many  years  a  Trustee  of  the  college.  He  died  in  the 
year  1848. 

Carrington,  Handbook  of  Charlotte  County,  1907,  p.  13. 

Blake  B.  Woodson 

Of  Cumberland  County.  Woodsons  were  clerks  of  Cum- 
berland County  for  a  hundred  years  after  1781,  among  them 
Blake  B.  Woodson  from  1846  to  1881.  It  is  likely  that  Blake 
Woodson,  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Union  Society  in  1789, 
was  a  lawyer;  and  it  is  not  impossible  that  he  settled  in 
western  Virginia.  Blake  Woodson,  a  lawyer  of  Cumberland 
County,  and  clerk  of  Fayette  County,  married  in  1830  the 
widow  of  Thomas  Jackson,  father  of  General  T.  J.  Jackson. 


1790 


Thomas  Poage 

Son  of  John  Poage  of  Augusta  County.  Dr.  Moses  Hoge 
was  a  brother-in-law  of  Thomas  Poage,  A.  B.,  1790,  who  died 
suddenly  in  1793,  ' '  a  young  minister  of  great  promise,  newly 
married  and  about  to  settle  at  Gerrardstown, "  then  in 
Berkeley  County. 

Foote  I,  557,  559. 

David  Smith 

b.  1772,  d.  1803.  Son  of  Rev.  Joseph  Smith  (whose  par- 
ents were  emigrants  from  England),  long  of  Washington 
County,  Pennsylvania.  Washington  County  was  for  some 
time  within  the  limits  of  the  Presbyterian  Synod  of  Virginia. 
About  1789,  Mr.  Smith  attending  a  meeting  of  that  Synod, 
took  with  him  his  son  David,  whom  he  then  committed  to 
the  care  of  John  Blair  Smith  to  be  educated  at  the  College 
of  Hampden  Sidney.  [A.  B.,  1790.]  David  Smith  became 
a  minister.  His  work  was  done  in  Fayette  and  Westmore- 
land Counties,  Pennsylvania.  He  died  at  the  Forks  of 
Yough,  Westmoreland  County,  leaving  a  son  who  became 
a  minister,  Rev.  Joseph  Smith,  D.  D.,  of  Alleghany.  It  is 
possible  that  David  Smith  (1817)  was  a  son  of  David  Smith, 
1790. 

William  Hill  on  his  missionary  tour,  late  in  1790,  to  Lan- 
caster County  and  Eastern  Virginia,  was  accompanied  part 
of  the  way  by  David  Smith.  They  stopped  at  Col.  Gordon's 
in  Lancaster,  and  were  most  hospitably  received.  Col.  Gor- 
don was  a  conspicuous  Virginia  Presbyterian,  a  man  of 
wealth,  brother-in-law  of  James  Waddel.  Smith  had  to  stay 
a  while  at  Col.  Gordon's;  he  had  been  hurt  by  his  horse 
falling  on  the  ice.  Dr.  Hill  entered  in  his  journal:  "I  find 
notwithstanding   the    unfavourable    impressions   made   upon 


84  [1790 

Mr.  Smith  and  myself  the  night  of  our  arrival  at  Col.  Gor- 
don's, there  were  some  eminently  pious  persons  in  that  gay 
and  fashionable  circle  into  which  we  were  introduced  with 
so  much  formality.  I  find  this  also,  that  I  had  attached  too 
much  importance  to  dress  and  manners." 

Sprague  III,  280. 
Foote  II,  179-182. 

Willia.ni  Williamson 

In  1794,  William  Williamson  (who  had  graduated  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1790),  joined  the  Synod  of  the 
Carolinas;  in  1799  he  was  the  minister  at  Fairforest,  South 
Carolina.  In  1805  he  was  released  by  the  Synod  of  the 
Carolinas  to  the  State  of  Ohio,  and  was  living  at  Manches- 
ter, Ohio,  in  1836. 

Foote,  Sketches  of  North  Carolina,  290,  302,  457. 
Howe,  Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina,  II,  146. 
Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,  p.  153. 

Walter  Coles 

It  is  likely  that  this  was  Walter  Coles,  b.  1778,  d.  1854, 
of  'Woodville,'  Albemarle  County,  son  of  John  Coles  of 
Albemarle,  and  grandson  of  John  Coles,  the  emigrant,  who 
settled  as  a  merchant  in  Henrico  County,  coming  to  Virginia 
from  Enniscorthy,  Ireland.  This  Walter  Coles  was  a  brother 
of  Edward  Coles,  Governor  of  Illinois  (Hampden  Sidney, 
1805). 

"Woods,  History  of  Albemarle  County. 

John  Lambdin 

Amelia  County  or  Prince  Edward  County.  The  name  was 
also  spelled  Lamkin.  Peter  Lamkin  was  church  warden  of 
a  church  in  Raleigh  Parish,  Amelia  County,  in  the  year  1786. 


1790]  85 

John  Spencer 

John  Spencer  of  Charlotte  County,  born  1745,  married  a 
daughter  of  Thomas  Watkins  of  Chickahominy,  father  of 
Francis  Watkins  of  Prince  Edward  County.  It  seems  prob- 
able that  John  Spencer,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege, 1790,  was  the  son  of  that  John  Spencer.  It  would  be 
of  great  interest  to  have  a  full  statement  showing  the  sup- 
port in  personnel  given  Hampden  Sidney  College  (or  any 
other  college)  by  the  founders  of  the  institution  through  their 
descendants  and  connections.  These  are  matters  of  curious 
value,  In  1790,  as  at  other  times  in  the  history  of  the  place, 
the  main  obligation  was  how  to  get  students  and  how  to  hold 
them  legitimately,  no  matter  where  they  came  from. 

Francis  Watkins 

Francis  Watkins,  a  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1790, 
son  of  Francis  Watkins,  clerk  of  Prince  Edward  Court, 
Trustee,  etc.,  was  born  in  1776,  and  died  in  Alabama  where 
he  had  taken  up  residence.  In  1810  Francis  Watkins,  Jr., 
was  a  Justice  of  Prince  Edward  County. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton,  of   Charlotte  County,  1920. 


1791 


George  M.  Bibb 

b.  1772,  d.  1859.  Son  of  Richard  Bibb,  Trustee,  a  resident 
of  Prince  Edward  County  perhaps  as  late  as  1795,  who 
removed  to  Kentucky.  George  Bibb  left  Hampden  Sidney 
College  for  Princeton.  He  was  graduated  A.  M.,  at  Prince- 
ton in  1792.  Walter  Coles  and  William  Watkins,  who  had 
been  at  Hampden  Sidney,  were  also  at  Princeton  in  1792. 
Bibb  went  to  William  and  Mary  for  law,  finishing  there  in 
1795.  He  then  settled  in  Kentucky,  at  Lexington,  and  was 
immediately  successful  as  a  lawyer  and  public  man.  He  was 
a  member  of  the  Kentucky  legislature  several  times  before 
1809;  was  twice  chief  justice  of  the  court  of  appeals;  was 
a  Senator  in  Congress  1811-1814,  1829-1835;  and  for  a  few 
months  was  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  under  President 
Tyler.  Once  getting  to  Washington,  Mr.  Bibb  staid  there, 
becoming  a  minor  government  official.  He  died  in  George- 
town, District  of  Columbia.  He  came  of  a  family  of  long- 
lived  people,  several  of  them  living  much  beyond  eighty 
years. 

Saunders,  Early  Settlers  of  Alabama,  p.  434. 

Andrew  Brown 

In  1799  Andrew  Brown  was  listed  as  minister  at  Cane  Creek, 
South  Carolina,  Synod  of  the  Carolinas.  It  is  almost  certain 
that  this  was  the  Andrew  Brown  who  graduated  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College  in  1791.  Removing  to  Alabama,  Mr.  Brown 
died  there  Oct.  18,  1823. 

Howe,  Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina,  II,  410. 

John  Poage  Campbell 

b.  1767,  d.  1814.  Son  of  Robert  Campbell  of  Augusta 
County,  who  in  1781  settled  in  Kentucky.     John  Campbell 


1791]  87 

went  to  school  at  home  in  Rockbridge  Connty  (which  had  been 
set  off  from  Augusta),  and  then  to  David  Rice  at  the  Transyl- 
vania Grammar  School  in  Kentucky;  he  pursued  his  studies 
further  under  the  Rev.  Archibald  Scott  of  Augusta  County. 
At  the  age  of  nineteen  he  became  preceptor  of  an  academy 
presided  over  by  Henry  Patillo,  at  Williamsburg,  Warren 
County,  North  Carolina.  There  he  adopted  infidel  opinions, 
but  shook  them  off  by  reading  Soame  Jenyns.  Giving  up  the 
study  of  medicine,  he  resolved  to  fit  himself  for  the  ministry 
of  the  Presbyterian  church.  During  the  college  year  1790-91, 
he  acted  as  tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  was  awarded  the 
degree  of  Batchelor  of  Arts  in  April,  1791,  on  the  recom- 
mendation of  Messrs.  Scott,  Patillo,  John  Blair  Smith,  and 
Drury  Lacy.  He  studied  theology  under  William  Graham  at 
Liberty  Hall,  and  under  Moses  Hoge  at  Shepherdstown.  Re- 
turning to  Kentucky  in  1795,  he  preached  at  Danville,  Lexing- 
ton and  other  places,  and  in  1811  was  chaplain  to  the  legis- 
lature. His  salary  was  small.  With  his  preaching  he  com- 
bined the  practice  of  medicine,  in  order  to  support  his  family. 
Dr.  Campbell  published  a  good  deal.  His  ' '  Letters  to  a  Gen- 
tleman at  the  Bar"  was  a  criticism  of  Erasmus  Darwin's  the- 
ories. Dr.  Campbell  died  in  Kentucky  in  1814.  President 
Dwight  of  Yale,  who  knew  him  personally  had  a  high  opinion 
of  him  as  a  scholar  and  divine.  Dr.  Campbell  assumed  the 
name  Poage  out  of  affection  for  his  friend,  Thomas  Poage 
(class  of  1790). 

Sprague  III,  626-629. 

Green,  Historic  Families  of  Kentucky,  50-60. 

James  Jones 

b.  1772,  d.  1848.  Son  of  Major  Richard  Jones  of  '  The 
Poplars,'  near  what  is  now  Nottoway  Court  House.  After 
his  graduation,  James  Jones  apparently  intended  to  study 
theology  under  the  Rev.  Devereux  Jarratt  of  Dinwiddie 
County,  one  of  the  few  evangelicals  of  the  Virginia  Episcopal 
Church  at  that  time.  But  young  Jones  took  up  medicine 
instead,  following  Dr.  Rush's  lectures  at  Philadelphia,  and 


88  [1791 

then  going  to  Edinburgh,  where  he  made  his  degree  in  1796 
(see  his  Dissert atio  Medica  Inauguralis  de  Tetano,  Edinburgh, 
1796,  dedicated  to  William  B.  Giles,  Dr.  George  Brown  of 
Baltimore,  and  Dr.  John  Patterson  of  Virginia).  Dr.  Jones 
settled  in  Nottoway  County,  at  a  place  he  called  'Mountain 
Hall,'  on  Deep  Creek.  He  was  an  old  time  Southern  doctor, 
with  a  large  plantation,  very  hospitable,  and  much  in  politics. 
He  was  in  the  legislature  at  various  intervals  from  1804  to 
1829,  was  in  Congress  a  term  or  two  from  1821,  was  a  member 
of  the  Privy  Council  of  the  State  under  Governor  Tyler. 
For  a  while  Dr.  Jones  belonged  to  the  Agnostic  Club  (of  which 
Wm.  B.  Giles  was  a  member),  that  used  to  meet  at  Paineville, 
near  Chinquepin  Church  in  Amelia  County.  Afterwards  Dr. 
Jones  was  virtually  the  founder  of  the  Presbyterian  church 
in  Nottoway  County.  He  was  also  a  pronounced  temperance 
man,  and  provided  for  the  manumission  of  his  slaves. 

Biographical  Sketch  by  Hon.  Walter  A.  Watson,  in  Kaleido- 
scope, 1902. 

John  Archer  Morton 

Brother  of  Major  James  Morton  of  Prince  Edward  County ; 
born  1772,  A.  B.,  Hampden  Sidney,  1791 ;  one  of  the  organ- 
izers of  the  Union  Society,  1789;  went  into  business  at  Bor- 
deaux, France,  where  he  spent  many  years;  called  "French 
John"  by  his  relatives  at  home.  W.  J.  Morton,  Bordeaux, 
France,  was  a  student  in  the  prep,  school  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  in  1824.  Major  James  Morton  saw  some  service  under 
Lafayette.  It  may  be  that  John  Morton  found  his  way  to 
France  through  the  good  will  of  the  amiable  Marquis.  John 
A.  Morton,  it  is  said,  was  United  States  Consul  at  Bordeaux, 
and  married  the  daughter  of  a  governor  of  the  island  of  Hayti. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

Moses  Waddel 

b.  1770,  d.  1840.  Son  of  William  Waddel,  who  had  left 
County  Down,  near  Belfast,  in  1766  and  settled  in  Rowan 


1791]  89 

County,  North  Carolina.  At  the  age  of  eight,  Moses  Waddel 
was  entered,  despite  his  father's  misgivings,  at  James  Hall's 
celebrated  school,  Clio's  Nursery,  begun  in  1778.  At  this 
school  he  continued  five  or  six  years,  then  turned  teacher  him- 
self and  became  a  great  one  long  before  he  died.  Teaching 
near  his  home  in  North  Carolina,  and  in  Georgia  (whither  his 
father  had  removed),  he  determined  about  1788  to  be  a  min- 
ister of  the  gospel.  As  to  where  he  should  complete  his  edu- 
cation, he  asked  the  advice  of  the  Rev.  John  Springer,  ot 
Abbeville  District,  South  Carolina,  who  had  been  of  the  first 
staff  of  teachers  at  Hampden  Sidney.  Mr.  Springer  advised 
him  to  go  to  Hampden  Sidney  College  and  John  Blair  Smith. 
Moses  Waddel  rode  horseback  all  the  way  from  his  home  in 
Green  County,  Georgia,  to  Prince  Edward  County  and  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  Being  well  prepared,  he  took  his  degree 
in  less  than  a  year.  Dr.  Waddel  (D.  D.,  Univ.  of  South 
Carolina,  1807),  was  especially  a  teacher.  It  is  wonderful 
to  read  of  his  personal  methods,  so  different  from  the  method 
rather  conventional  now,  which  made  his  school  "Willington 
Academy,"  Abbeville  District,  S.  C,  not  only  famous  but,  as 
it  were,  immortal.  Somehow,  Dr.  Waddel,  who  was  not  very 
learned,  taught  so  that  his  pupils  learned.  For  ten  years 
after  1819,  he  was  President  of  the  University  of  Georgia. 
He  then  returned  to  his  home  at  "Willington,"  South  Caro- 
lina, farmed  a  large  plantation  successfully  and  preached. 
His  brother-in-law,  John  C.  Calhoun,  said  of  him:  "He  may 
justly  be  considered  as  the  father  of  classical  education  in  the 
upper  country  of  South  Carolina  and  Georgia." 

John  N.  Waddel,  ' '  Academic  Memorials  of  Thre?  Generations. ' ' 
Sprague  IV,  63-71. 

Willliam  Morton  Watkins 

Extract  from  the  manuscript  diary  of  Richard  N.  Venable 
of  Prince  Edward  County :—"  Oct.  15,  1791,  A.  B.  Venable 
set  out  for  Congress,  Walter  Coles  and  William  Watkins 
accompanying  him  to  finish  their  education  at  Princeton." 
It  was  rather  the  fashion  from  1780  to  1800,  for  graduates 


90  [1791 

and  others,  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  to  finish  their  studies 
at  Princeton.  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  had  great  influence  in 
strengthening  the  hold  of  Princeton  on  the  South.  Mr.  Wat- 
kins  took  his  Bachelor's  degree  at  Princeton  in  1792.  Coming 
back  to  his  home  in  Charlotte  County,  he  studied  law,*  but 
never  practiced.  He  was  a  representative  from  Charlotte  in 
the  House  of  Delegates,  1812-1815,  and  in  1830.  He  died  in 
1865,  nearly  ninety  years  old.  Mr.  Watkins  was  a  Trustee 
of  Hampden  Sidney  College  for  more  than  thirty  years. 

John  Makemie  Wilson 

b.  1769,  d.  1831.  His  father,  John  Wilson,  an  emigrant 
from  England  to  Philadelphia,  was  employed  at  Philadelphia 
in  a  mercantile  business,  but  before  the  Revolution  removed 
to  Mecklenburg  County,  North  Carolina,  settling  near  the 
town  of  Charlotte ;  he  died  about  1780,  a  Presbyterian  and  a 
Whig.  John  Wilson's  wife  was  a  daughter  of  George  Ma- 
kemie, a  brother-in-law  of  Andrew  Jackson's  father.  John 
Makemie  Wilson  was  put  to  school  at  Charlotte  under  Dr. 
Henderson,  and  was  prepared  by  him  for  the  senior  class  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College.  It  is  likely  that  Moses  Waddel  in- 
duced young  Wilson  to  go  to  college  with  him.  After  gradu- 
ating at  Hampden  Sidney,  Wilson  studied  theology  with 
James  Hall  of  Iredell  County,  North  Carolina,  and  from  1795 
to  1801  followed  his  work  as  a  minister  in  Burke  County. 
From  1801  for  thirty  years  to  the  end  of  his  life,  John  Ma- 
kemie Wilson  was  pastor  of  Rocky  River  Church  in  Cabarrus 
County,  a  very  large  country  congregation.  For  a  dozen  years 
after  1812  he  kept  a  classical  school  in  Cabarrus  County, 
sending  from  it  perhaps  as  many  as  fifteen  students  to  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  Dr.  Wilson  was  an  able  minister  and  a 
wise  man  in  his  dealings  with  his  congregation.    He  was  cele- 


*Dr.  Foote  (I,  502)  says  that  during  the  years  1789-1815,  there  was 
a  law  school  of  high  standing  not  far  from  Hampden  Sidney  College — 
and  that  this  law  school  rather  flouted  religious  matters.  Where  was  the 
school;  in  Cumberland,  Prince  Edward  or  Charlotte  and  who  was  the 
expounder  1  We  guess  Dr.  Foote  meant  the  Taylor  School,  active  as 
early  as  1807. 


1791]  91 

brated  as  a  peace  maker.  He  was  greatly  interested  in  educa- 
tion, and  was  active  in  the  movement  for  a  college  in  western 
North  Carolina — plans  realized  by  one  of  his  pupils  after  his 
death.  John  Makemie  Wilson  was  a  man  of  brains  and  piety 
and  common  sense.     D.  D.,  Univ.  of  North  Carolina,  1829. 

Foote,  North  Carolina,  476-488. 
Sprague  IV,  90-94. 

William  Daniel 

In  the  later  eighteenth  century,  Daniel  was  a  name  fixed 
locally  both  in  Cumberland  County  and  in  Charlotte  County. 
Judge  William  Daniel,  father  of  Judge  William  Daniel,  and 
grandfather  of  Senator  John  W.  Daniel,  was  born  in  1770. 
It  may  be  that  he  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1791.  It  is  pleasing  to  register  such  hereditaments,  speak- 
ing wholly  as  a  layman. 

Hayden,  Virginia  Genealogies. 

David  Flournoy 

(See  U.  S.  Minutes,  1791) 

It  is  possible  that  David  Flournoy  was  a  student  at  Liberty 
Hall  Academy  before  or  after  coming  to  Hampden  Sidney. 
He  studied  medicine  at  Edinburgh  and  practiced  in  Prince 
Edward  and  Charlotte  Counties.  Dr.  David  Flournoy,  of 
'  Chantilly,'  Prince  Edward  County,  was  living  in  1829. 
There  was  a  David  Flournoy  who  died  in  Prince  Edward 
County  in  1826.  When  St.  Patrick's  parish  was  established 
in  1755,  David  Flournoy  was  a  church  warden. 

Patrick  H.  Fontaine 

Son  of  Col.  John  Fontaine  and  Martha  Henry,  daughter 
of  Patrick  Henry.  P.  H.  Fontaine  may  have  been  a  physician. 
He  was  in  the  State  legislature  (House  of  Delegates),  1811- 


92  [1791 

1812 ;  1835-1836,  from  Henry  County.  At  Cornell  University 
there  is  a  manuscript  volume,  reminiscences  of  Edward  Fon- 
taine, son  of  Patrick  Fontaine. 

Jacob  Jennings 

The  names  Jacob  Jennings  and  Samuel  K.  Jennings  appear 
on  Union  Society  Minutes  for  1791.  These  are  interesting 
names.  It  is  not  likely  that  Jacob  Jennings  was  a  student 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College  and  it  is  not  certain  that  his  son 
Samuel  K.  Jennings  was  a  student  there.  Jacob  Jennings  was 
born  in  New  Jersey  in  1744.  At  the  age  of  forty,  having 
practiced  medicine  for  some  years,  he  became  a  minister  of 
the  Dutch  Reformed  Church.  Soon  after,  he  settled  in  Vir- 
ginia and  made  his  home  there  several  years.  His  son,  Samuel 
K.  Jennings,  born  about  1774,  was  also  a  physician  and  a 
minister  (of  the  Methodist  Church).  He  practiced  for  a  time 
at  Lynchburg,  and  then  removed  to  Baltimore.  So,  it  may 
be  that  Dr.  Jacob  Jennings  lived  for  a  while  near  Hampden 
Sidney  College  and  was  an  honorary  member  of  the  Union 
Society ;  and  it  may  be  that  his  son  Samuel  K.  was  a  student 
at  the  college. 

Sprague  IV,  549. 

Kecollections  of  Lynchburg,  p.  209. 

Francis  Jones 

To  be  assigned  to  Amelia  County,  and  likely  a  near  relation 
of  Francis  Fitzgerald,  clerk  of  Amelia  County,  1805-1852. 
It  is  probable  that  Francis  Jones  was  the  father  of  Francis 
Fitzgerald  Jones,  who  was  the  father  of  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Thweatt  Jones  (1855). 

James  Lyle 

In  Presbyterian  annals,  Lyle  is  a  name  associated  especially 
with  Rockbridge  County,  but  there  were  Lyles  around  1800 
in  Cumberland  County  and  in  Chesterfield  County.     James 


1791]  93 

Lyle,  Jr.,  died  at  Manchester  in  1806.  {Richmond  Argus, 
August,  1806.)  James  Lyle,  until  evidence  is  adduced,  is  to 
be  assigned  to  Cumberland  County.  The  Rev.  Matthew  Lyle 
of  Rockbridge,  did  not  settle  in  Prince  Edward  County  until 
1794. 

Thomas  A.  Morton 

b.  1777,  d.  1851.  Son  of  Quin  Morton  of  Prince  Edward 
County.  Thomas  A.  Morton  lived  in  Cumberland  County, 
and  was  at  one  time  engaged  in  business  at  Farmville. 

John  H.  Wood 

Son  of  Valentine  Wood,  clerk  of  Goochland  County,  who 
married  a  sister  of  Patrick  Henry. 


1792 


John  Caldwell 

John  Caldwell  of  Cub  Creek,  Lunenburg  County  (later 
Charlotte  County),  who  died  in  the  year  1751,  was  one  of  the 
founders  of  Southside  Virginia.  He  was  the  foremost  man 
of  the  celebrated  Cub  Creek  settlement  of  Scots  that  is  known 
to  have  been  in  Lunenburg  County  (Brunswick  County  then), 
as  early  as  1738.  Moreover,  it  is  supposed  that  John  Cald- 
well was  the  mover  in  bringing  to  the  region  the  first  Buffalo 
(Prince  Edward  County)  and  Hat  Creek  colonies  of  Scotch 
Presbyterians.  A  great  part  of  these  emigrants  moved  on 
during  the  Revolution  to  the  Kentucky  country,  to  Georgia, 
or  to  South  Carolina.  John  Caldwell's  great-grandson  was 
John  C.  Calhoun.  John  Caldwell,  writing  his  will  in  1750, 
prefaced  it  thus — "In  the  name  of  the  eternal  and  almighty 
God  who  formed  the  universe  by  the  word  of  His  power,  and 
governed  it  by  the  unerring  dictates  of  His  wisdom."  John 
Caldwell's  sons  were  William,  John,  James,  David  and  Robert. 
He  left  them  each  about  five  hundred  acres  of  land.  We  will 
suppose  that  John  Caldwell,  and  Allen  Caldwell  (Hampden 
Sidney,  1792  and  1790)  were  his  descendants. 

Whitsett,  Life  of  Judge  Caleb  Wallace,  pp.  6-7. 

George  Calhoun 

Probably  a  brother  of  William  Calhoun  [c.  1786]  ;  of  Prince 
Edward  County:  sons  of  Adam  Calhoun,  who  died  in  1796. 

Clement  R[ead]  Jameson 

Col.  Clement  Read  of  Lunenburg  (father  of  Col.  Isaac 
Read),  had  a  daughter  who  married  Captain  Jameson  of 
"Annefield,"  Charlotte  County.  Therefore  it  seems  likely 
enough  that   Clement  R.   Jameson,   a  student   at   Hampden 


1792]  95 

Sidney  College,  1792,  was  a  grandson  of  Colonel  Clement 
Read.  The  catalogue  of  the  Union  Society  assigns  Clement 
Jameson  to  Alexandria. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton,  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

George  Means 

Possibly  a  son  of  Robert  Means  of  Richmond,  who  died  in 
1808.  And  possibly  George  Means,  1792,  was  from  Cabarrus 
County,  North  Carolina  or  from  South  Carolina. 

William  Moseley 

Moseley  was  a  name  well  fixed  at  this  time  in  Powhatan 
County.  William  Moseley,  Jr.,  of  Powhatan  County,  died  in 
1807.  Union  Society  Catalogue  assigns  William  Moseley, 
1792,  to  Charlotte  County.  General  William  Moseley  of  Bed- 
ford County  was  active  around  1816.  In  1803,  William  Mose- 
ley, of  Richmond,  a  member  of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati 
of  Virginia,  voted  for  Hampden  Sidney  College,  as  against 
Washington  Academy  (Washington  and  Lee),  when  the  So- 
ciety was  making  choice  of  an  institution  of  learning  to  receive 
its  funds.  The  vote  stood  eighteen  for  Washington  Academy, 
and  sixteen  for  Hampden  Sidney.  Hampden  Sidne}^  College 
must  still  be  grateful  to  its  friends  of  the  Cincinnati,  1803, 
viz.  : 

1.  William  Bentley  Powhatan 

2.  William  Moseley  Richmond 

3.  Marks  Vandewall Richmond 

4.  George  Carrington Halifax 

5.  Clement  Carrington  Charlotte 

6.  John  Scott  Halifax 

7.  Charles  Scott _ _ Kentucky 

8.  John  Harris  Powhatan 

9.  Jordan  Harris  Powhatan 

10.  Willis  Wilson  Cumberland 

11.  John  Crute  _ _ Prince  Edward 

12.  Matt.  Clay  _ Pittsylvania 

13.  William  B.  Wallace Stafford 

14.  Larkin  Smith  , King  and  Queen 

15.  Samuel  Coleman  _ Richmond 

16.  Mr.  Trabue  Chesterfield 


96  [1792 

Charles  Price 

Probably  the  son  of  Charles  Price  [1757-1790]  and  grand- 
son of  Pugh  Price  [1690-1775],  of  Prince  Edward  County, 
[see  "  John  Price  and  Some  of  His  Descendants,"  p.  15.] 


1703 


George  Moore 

Probably  a  son  of  Joseph  Moore  of  Lunenburg  County  or 
Prince  Edward  County,  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
1790-1792.  In  April,  1793,  George  Moore  lodged  complaint 
with  the  Board  of  Trustees  against  James  Hervey  Rice,  "one 
of  the  teachers  at  college,  for  exercising  over  him  unreason- 
able authority,  and  beating  him  without  cause."  The  Board, 
as  Boards  must,  decided  that  George  Moore  was  quite  blame- 
able,  and  that  Mr.  Rice  had  been  imprudent. 

James  Hervey  Rice 

James  H.  Rice  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  as  early 
as  1791  (Union  Society  Minutes).  In  1793  he  was  a  tutor, 
mildly  reprimanded  by  the  Board  that  year  for  underrating 
by  overswitching  a  grammar  school  boy.  James  Hervey  Rice 
was  a  son  of  the  Rev.  David  Rice,  was  himself  a  minister,  and 
seems  early  to  have  gone  out  to  Kentucky  where  he  ended  his 
days  it  is  to  be  supposed.  In  1818,  the  Rev.  Joseph  C.  Har- 
rison of  Kentucky  married  his  daughter. 
Brown,  Cabells,  p.  519. 

Anderson  Wade 

His  name  was  proposed  for  membership  in  the  Union  So- 
ciety, March,  1793,  and  it  is  not  impossible  he  was  a  student 
at  the  college.  The  family  of  Wade  has  been  settled  in  the 
territory  of  Prince  Edward  County  since  about  the  year  1740. 
In  1825  Anderson  Wade  of  Prince  Edward  County  entered 
Hampden  Sidney  College.  He  was  a  student  at  the  college 
two  years,  going  to  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  where  he 
graduated  in  medicine  in  1831.  Dr.  Wade  became  a  minister 
of  the  Episcopal  Church,  was  in  charge  of  Westover  parish 
a  good  many  years,  and  was  for  awhile,  about  1853,  Rector 
of  the  Monumental  Church  at  Richmond. 


1794 


Nathaniel  Venable 

Son  of  Nathaniel  Venable,  of  Prince  Edward  County,  one 
of  the  founders  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Nathaniel  Ven- 
able, A.  B.,  1794,  graduated  at  Princeton,  Master  of  Arts,  in 
1796,  and  died  in  1801.  He  had  begun  practice  as  a  lawyer. 
It  is  a  fact  worthy  of  record  that  the  six  sons  of  Nathaniel 
Venable,  the  elder,  were  doubtless  all  of  them  students  either 
at  the  academy  or  the  college  of  Hampden  Sidney.  The  dates 
of  birth  of  these  six  sons,  as  set  down  in  a  Bible,  are : 

Samuel  W.  Venable,  1756. 

Abraham  B.  Venable,   1758. 

Eichard  N.  Venable,  January  16,  1763. 

Nathaniel  Venable,  February  13,  1776;   died  August  23,  1801. 

William  L.  Venable,  March,  1780. 

Thomas  Venable,   November  17,  1782. 

Daniel  Dodson 

Daniel  Dodson  of  Petersburg,  banker,  died  in  1879,  aetat. 
55.  It  is  probable  that  he  was  the  son  of  Daniel  Dodson,  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1794,  who  may  have 
come  from  Prince  Edward  County.  In  1792,  Archibald 
Alexander  stayed  with  a  Mr.  Dodson  at  Petersburg  (Life  of 
Alexander,  143-145).  Dr.  Alexander  did  not  take  pains  to 
make  notes  for  an  alumni  catalogue  of  Hampden  Sidney. 
Dr.  Richard  Mcllwaine,  it  seems,  took  the  pains,  and  then 
something  took  his  notes.  Dr.  Mcllwaine  mentions  in  his 
Reminiscences  (p.  113)  that  in  1858  when  he  was  preaching 
in  Amelia  County  he  met  an  old  gentleman  who  had  been  a 
pupil  of  Dr.  Alexander's  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  had  also 
been  a  member  of  the  Paineville  club,  not  a  pious  club.  In 
the  circumstances,  Dr.  Mcllwaine  could  not  well  make  a  note 
for  his  alumni  catalogue.  The  anecdote,  an  affecting  one,  is 
worth  reading,  as  showing  how  a  man's  works  do  follow  him. 


1796 


Hugh  Dickson 

Graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1796.  "Those 
ministers  with  whom  Dr.  Waddel  loved  to  interchange  fra- 
ternal visitations  were  such  men  as  Dr.  Barr  of  upper  Long 
Cane  Church,  Rev.  Hugh  Dickson,  etc."  (Life  of  Moses 
Waddel,  p.  125  in  Academic  Memorials,  by  John  N.  Waddel.) 

At  the  death  of  Mr.  Dickson,  his  Presbvterv  drew  ud  reso- 
lutions commemorative  of  his  work  as  a  man  and  as  a  minister 
of  the  church.  At  the  end  these  words  appear :  "and  in  token 
of  our  respect  for  his  character,  this  Presbytery  leave  a  blank 
page  in  the  book  of  its  records,  on  which  his  name,  date  of 
birth,  age,  and  length  of  pastorate  and  ministerial  life  shall 
be  written."     That  page  shows  this  writing: — 

In  memory  of  Rev.  Hugh  Dickson,  who  was  horn  Octo- 
ber 15,  1772,  was  licensed  to  preach  the  gospel,  A.  D.t 
1800,  ordained  and  installed  pastor  of  Greenville  Church, 
Abbeville  District,  South  Carolina,  November  11,  1801. 
Resigned  said  charge,  A.  D.f  1846.  Departed  this  life 
July  9,  1853.  William  McWhorter,  Chairman* 

Howe,  Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina,  II,  750-753.     Mr. 
Dickson  had  supplied  Dr.  Howe  with  many  historical  facts. 

James  Aiken 

James  Aiken,  a  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1795,  was 
tutor  in  the  college  for  perhaps  a  year  after  the  fall  of  1798. 
It  is  pretty  certain  that  he  was  from  Cumberland  County. 


*It  is  curious  that  this  memorial  has  gone  unnoticed  locally  for  so  long 
a  time  until  the  grandson  (Dr.  A.  W.  McWhorter)  of  the  author  has 
become  a  member  of  the  faculty  at  Hampden  Sidney  College. 


100  [1796 

James  Aiken  of  that  county  died  in  1776.  James  Aiken  was 
living  in  Cumberland  in  1811  and  James  M.  Aiken  died  there 
in  1831. 

Thomas  Williamson 

Thomas  Williamson,  M.  D.,  came  under  the  direction  of  a 
Presbytery  in  South  Carolina  in  1802  and  in  1804  was  an 
ordained  minister  in  South  Carolina.  It  is  possible  he  was 
a  brother  of  William  Williamson,  that  both  were  students  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College  and  that  both  spent  their  last  years 
in  Ohio.  Thomas  S.  Williamson  was  minister  at  Frankford, 
Ohio,  in  1836,  and  William  Williamson  was  at  Manchester. 
Were  these  brothers  of  Samuel  Williamson,  President  of 
Davidson  College? 

Howe,  Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina. 
Minutes  of  General  Assembly,  Presbyterian  Church,  1836. 

Joseph  Carrington  Cabell 

Feb.  12,  1796,  Joseph  C.  Cabell  was  admitted  a  member  of 
the  Union  Society.  He  seems  to  have  been  the  last  member 
enrolled  under  the  first  organization  in  1789.  After  1796 
the  Union  Society  was  inactive  for  a  few  years,  symptom  of 
the  uncertain  state  of  the  College. 

Joseph  C.  Cabell,  brother  of  William  H.  Cabell,  and  of 
Nicholas  Cabell,  Jr.,  was  born  in  1778;  was  educated  by 
tutors  at  home,  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  (1795-96),  and  at 
William  and  Mary,  where  he  took  his  batchelor's  degree.  He 
spent  about  four  years  in  Europe  1802-1806;  then  was  mar- 
ried and  settled  in  Nelson  County.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
State  legislature,  either  in  the  House  of  Delegates  or  the 
Senate,  for  about  thirty  years  beginning  in  1808.  Mr.  Cabell 
was  Thomas  Jefferson's  chief  coadjutor  in  the  founding  of 
the  University  of  Virginia.  He  was  on  the  Board  of  Visitors 
of  the  University  from  its  foundation  in  1819  until  his  death, 
and  was  Rector  of  the  Board  for  about  thirteen  years.  Much 
of  his  time  from  1835  was  given  to  the  affairs  of  the  James 


1796]  101 

River  and  Kanawha  Canal.  He  was  the  first  president  of  that 
canal  company  and  his  interest  in  it  only  ended  with  his  life. 
Joseph  C.  Cabell  was  a  public  man  who  worked  for  solid 
things — "one  with  Mr.  Jefferson  in  founding  the  university, 
a  pioneer  in  the  State  improvements,  a  gentleman,  a  scholar, 
a  devoted  patriot  and  Virginian,  a  venerable  good  man,"  so 
Governor  Wise  described  him,  on  announcing  his  death,  Feb- 
ruary, 1856. 

Brown,  Cabells,  etc.,  pp.  263-266. 

William  Cole 

William  Cole  of  Charles  City  County  bought  land  near 
North  Garden,  in  Albemarle  County,  and  died  there  in  1802 
[Woods,  History  of  Albemarle  County] .  He  had  a  son  named 
William.  Dr.  Woods  says  that  the  sons  of  William  Cole, 
the  elder,  never  lived  in  Albemarle,  their  father  having  left 
them  a  large  estate  below  Eichmond.  William  Cole,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Union  Society  in  1796,  is  assigned  in  the  catalogue 
of  that  society  to  Lunenburg  County.  In  1800-1801  James 
D.  Cole  was  a  member  of  the  Union  Society.  Guess  work 
is  some  work,  at  least.  For  example,  James  Cole  of  Char- 
lotte County,  died  1782. 

Jacob  Morton 

Major  Jacob  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  a  Trustee  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  had  a  son  named  Jacob,  born  in 
1779  and  died  in  1798 :  it  is  likely  that  this  was  the  Jacob 
Morton,  who  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 
1795. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton,  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

Henry  E.  Watkins 

When  John  Blair  Smith  left  Hampden  Sidney,  he  came 
near  taking  the  college  with  him.  Certainly  the  college 
began  its  twenty-first  year  very  dismally.     Nor  student  nor 


102  [1796 

professor  of  the  first  twenty  years  was  present  to  open  the 
session  ;  the  only  freshman  was  a  grammar  school  boy,  'who 
for  several  days  cut  prayers  and  recitations  with  impunity. 
Then  appeared  [October,  1796]  a  young,  tall,  bony,  serious, 
earnest  and  yet  genial  looking  tutor  who  called  this  young 
gentleman  to  account,  put  his  name  on  the  "roll,"  assigned 
him  his  lessons  and  thus  restored  the  routine  of  college  life. 
And  so  for  several  weeks  did  the  late  Capt.  Henry  E.  Wat- 
kins,  as  student,  and  John  Holt  Rice,  as  tutor,  sustain  the 
organic  life  of  the  institution.  How  that  new  student  was 
greened,  who  smoked  him,  who  dragged  him  by  a  cord  tied 
to  his  toe,  or  who  played  tricks  upon  that  tutor  and  escaped 
detection  under  cover  of  mere  numbers,  are  intricate  and 
profoundly  interesting  questions.'  [See  Hampden  Sidney 
Magazine,  March,  1859, ' '  Memorabilia, ' '  by  Professor  Charles 
Martin.] 

Henry  E.  Watkins,  [b.  1782,  d.  1856]  was  the  son  of  Fran- 
cis Watkins,  clerk  of  Prince  Edward  Court,  and  a  member 
from  its  organization  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College.  Francis  Watkins  was  an  excellent  man  of 
business  and  accumulated  a  large  estate.  Henry  E.  Wat- 
kins, his  son,  after  some  schooling  at  Hampden  Sidney,  was 
for  a  while  at  Washington  Academy,  Lexington ;  graduated 
at  Princeton  in  1801,  and  seems  to  have  studied  law  at 
William  and  Mary.  He  made  the  circle  of  the  sciences,  and 
went  around  from  college  to  college.  Settling  at  home,  he 
began  to  give  instruction  in  the  law.  It  is  on  record  that 
he  taught  the  rudiments  to  more  than  one  distinguished 
lawyer.  By  1812  Mr.  Watkins  was  in  the  legislature,  and 
from  1819  to  1835  he  was  often  in  the  legislature,  towards 
the  end  of  that  period  a  member  of  the  State  Senate.  In 
1815  he  was  in  command  of  a  Prince  Edward  troop  that  was 
out  on  skirmish  duty  as  far  as  Bottom's  Bridge  in  the  low 
country.  In  1818  Mr.  Watkins  was  one  of  the  commissioners 
to  choose  a  site  for  the  proposed  University  of  Virginia. 
For  about  forty  years  Henry  E.  Watkins  was  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  and  was 


1796]  103 

active  in  behalf  of  the  college.  He  was  a  man  of  leisure, 
of  high  character,  interested  in  the  advancement  of  letters 
and  science.  It  is  a  fact  worth  noting  that  hardly  ever  has 
Hampden  Sidney  College  been  without  a  representative  of 
this  family  of  Watkins  on  its  Board  of  Trustees. 


1799 


Archibald  Alexander 

Very  little  can  be  said  about  Archibald  Alexander's  time 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  because  his  biographer  has  chosen  to 
hurry  over  that  period,  except  for  a  long  digression  showing 
how  Dr.  Alexander  did  not  become  a  Baptist  at  Hampden 
Sidney.  This  is  to  be  regretted.  Dr.  Alexander  rendered 
Hampden  Sidney  College  very  positive  service,  and  yet  the 
idea  seems  to  have  been  held  that  he  did  not — was  restless 
to  get  away  while  he  was  there,  and  gave  up  his  work  there 
when  it  was  going  wrong.  Any  such  opinion  must  be  cor-, 
rected.  Dr.  Alexander  knew  his  own  mind  (which  was  one 
of  continual  growth),  and  after  trying  his  hand  at  running 
a  college  a  few  years,  reached  the  conclusion  that  he  might 
keep  on  in  that  business  as  long  as  he  pleased,  but  had  better 
do  something  else  and  somewhere  else. 

Archibald  Alexander  (1772-1851),  son  of  William  Alexan- 
der of  Rockbridge  County,  (whose  father,  Archibald  Alex- 
ander had  come  from  the  north  of  Ireland,  near  London- 
derry), grew  up  on  the  frontier  during  the  Revolution.  Wil- 
liam Alexander  was  a  merchant,  and  landholder  of  course,  in 
rather  close  touch  with  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia.  It  is  an 
interesting  subject  of  contemplation,  how  the  back  country 
of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  was  settled  from  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Philadelphia  and  looked  to  Philadelphia  for  almost 
everything  for  many  years.  The  Mecklenburg  Declaration 
of  Independence  was  very  much  a  Philadelphia  document. 
Archibald  Alexander  came  of  a  strong  minded  race,  accus- 
tomed to  books,  and  well  able  to  handle  the  hard  facts  of  life. 
As  it  happened,  he  was  a  Philadelphian  from  the  first,  and 
after  some  thirty  years  got  home,  won  home,  as  it  is  put. 
His  very  active  life  before  1812  was  but  his  apprenticeship 
for  his  life  of  reflection  and  authorship  after  1812.     Fortu- 


ARCHIBALD   ALEXANDER 


1799]  105 

nately,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  at  a  dangerous  stage  of 
decay,  got  a  few  years  of  Archibald  Alexander's  time. 

The  college  had  not  bred  up  (nor  did  it  for  years)  its  own 
managers.  Those  who  had  been  in  charge,  for  one  reason  or 
another,  had  become  entangled.  The  place  was  suffering 
badly  for  want  of  a  programme.  Lacking  this,  the  force  of 
the  Revolution  was  working  quite  against  it.  There  must  be 
new  hands  in  the  business,  persons  free  from  objection,  not 
organs  in  the  recent  neighborhood  discontents.  Archibald 
Alexander,  already  a  preacher  of  mark;  an  evangelical,  but 
well  grounded  in  the  schools ;  a  young  man  of  open  counten- 
ance and  engaging  manners;  known  throughout  Southside 
Virginia  for  his  missionary  zeal — Mr.  Alexander  was  an  ex- 
cellent choice  for  the  head  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 
1796.  That  year  Philadelphia  made  its  first  attempt  to  draw 
him  thither.  He  would  not  go  as  yet,  but  settled  down,  with 
his  group  of  Liberty  Hall  coadjutors,  to  the  tough  business 
of  reviving  and  maintaining  a  college  in  Southside  Virginia, 
in  despite  of  the  Revolution.  Alexander,  Rice  and  Speece, 
who  took  hold  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  as  the  eighteenth 
century  was  going  out,  were  pupils  of  William  Graham  at 
Liberty  Hall.  They  were  metaphysicians  like  their  master, 
and  all  the  better  teachers  for  it.  But  with  regard  to  the 
rehabilitation  of  the  college,  the  main  thing  was  that  Alexan- 
der and  Rice  were  willing  to  do  hard  work  directly  for  the  up- 
building of  the  school,  in  plant  and  method.  After  four  years 
they  could  see  some  results.  Then  Mr.  Alexander  resigned  and 
took  a  year  off.  He  went  away  to  get  married  and  to  look 
over  the  middle  States  and  New  England.  He  came  back  in 
1802,  interested  his  Board  in  securing  a  better  philosophical 
apparatus,  a  better  library  and  a  house  for  both — with  a  post 
and  rail  fence  around  the  collegium.  Then,  in  1806,  students 
becoming  rather  numerous  and  rather  obstreperous,  Mr.  Alex- 
ander thought  it  time  for  him  to  be  getting  on  to  Philadelphia. 
Leaving  Philadelphia  in  1812  (Pine  Street  Church),  he  went 
a  little  way  to  Princeton  and  there  stayed,  living  his  real  life 
which  was  that  of  a  christian  philosopher  and  author. 


106  [1799 

Of  Dr.  Alexander's  life  at  Hampden  Sidney,  the  extract 
given  below  is  about  all  that  is  to  be  found  in  the  biography 
written  by  his  son  : — ' '  On  going  to  Hampden  Sidney  he  had 
possession  of  the  president's  house,  but  usually  took  his  meals 
at  the  common  table.  At  no  time  of  his  life  did  he  feel  more 
keenly  the  stimulus  to  application,  and  he  declared  in  later 
years  that  whatever  accuracy  he  possessed  in  classical  and 
scientific  knowledge  was  acquired  during  this  period,  under 
the  spur  of  necessity.  He  began  by  insisting  on  the  utmost 
exactness,  and  took  pleasure  in  drilling  the  young  men  in 
those  rudiments  which  they  had  neglected.  The  number  in- 
creased rapidly,  but  there  were  no  regular  classes,  and  very 
few  took  a  complete  course.  Mr.  Alexander  was  earnestly 
engaged,  even  beyond  his  strength,  in  accumulating  and  sys- 
tematizing stores  of  knowledge;  and  in  conscientiously  en- 
deavoring to  lift  up  an  institution  which  had  sunk  almost  to 
the  lowest  point.  Though  he  had  under  his  care  many  promis- 
ing and  interesting  pupils,  he  never  felt  himself  completely 
at  home  at  the  head  of  a  college.  His  work  as  a  preacher  was 
what  pleased  him  most,  during  these  years,  and  the  cordial 
intimacies  of  a  cultured  and  Christian  people,  who  have  been 
and  still  are  noted,  even  among  Virginians,  for  the  warmth 
of  their  attachments  and  the  largeness  of  their  hospitality .' ' 

Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,  by  James  W.  Alexander. 

New  York    [Scribner]    1854,  p.  200. 
Van  Eensselaer's  Presbyterian  Magazine,  II,  25-34. 

Conrad  Speece 

b.  1776,  d.  1836.  Son  of  Conrad  Speece  of  Bedford  County, 
who  was  the  son  of  Conrad  Spiess  of  Mannheim  in  Baden. 
The  mother  of  Conrad  Speece  of  the  notice  was  Anne  Cath- 
erine Tournay  of  Zweibrucken  or  Deux-Ponts.  The  boy  grew 
up  on  a  farm  near  New  London.  His  parents  had  not  much 
wealth  nor  book-learning.  They  were  willing  to  send  their 
son  to  school,  being  assured  that  his  intellects  were  good. 
At  New  London  Academy,  confronted  with  the  Latin  gram- 
mar, Conrad  Speece  said  he  did  not  understand  what  it  was 


1799]  107 

about  and  would  rather  learn  something  else.  His  progress 
at  school  was  extraordinarily  rapid.  He  next  followed  studies 
at  Liberty  Hall,  made  up  his  mind  to  be  a  minister,  and  took 
his  theology  under  Rector  Graham.  He  fell  into  speculations 
on  the  subject  of  baptism  and  coming  to  Hampden  Sidney  as 
tutor  the  spring  of  1799  (he  had  filled  the  same  office  at 
Liberty  Hall  for  three  years),  he  very  soon  after  was  im- 
mersed by  a  Baptist  clergyman.  President  Alexander, 
Speece's  very  good  friend,  came  near  being  a  Baptist  him- 
self but  managed  to  argue  both  himself  and  Speece  out  of  the 
tendency.  Conrad  Speece  gave  up  his  tutorship  the  fall  of 
1801,  and  became  a  home  missionary  in  eastern  Virginia. 
From  1803  to  1812  he  was  in  charge  of  churches  in  Maryland ; 
in  Goochland,  Fluvanna,  Powhatan  and  Cumberland  Coun- 
ties, Virginia.  From  1812  until  his  death,  he  was  pastor  of 
Augusta  church.  Dr.  Speece  [D.  D.,  Princeton,  1820],  was 
a  remarkable  man.  He  was  tall,  large,  and  lubberly,  of  the 
German  stock  of  frugal  farmers,  and  retained  some  spice  of 
that  native  sap.  His  intellect  was  clear,  methodical  and  pre- 
cise. He  was  a  man  of  great  fluency  and  propriety  of  speech ; 
in  conversation  excellent,  full  of  a  droll  humor.  He  wrote 
much,  but  was  better  as  a  talker  than  as  a  writer.  He  was 
a  bachelor.  "Father  Mitchell  (James  Mitchell,  q.  v.)  used 
to  say  that  if  tobacco  was  a  poison,  it  was  a  slow  one  for  he 
had  chewed  it  for  seventy  years.  But  Dr.  Speece  being  only 
three  times  as  large  as  Father  Mitchell,  consumed  at  least  six 
times  as  much  in  twenty-four  hours.  He  literally  slept  with 
his  cheek  full  of  it.' 

Sprague  IV,  284-289. 

Robert  Dobbins 

It  is  possible  that  Robert  Dobbins  was  a  nephew  of  Fr. 
Moses  Waddel.  For  some  time  Dr.  Waddel's  Willington 
School  (under  his  general  superintendence)  was  managed  by 
his  nephew,  Moses  Waddel  Dobbins  [Academic  Memorials, 
p.  69]  ;  and  it  is  possible  that  Robert  Dobbins  went  out  to 


108  [1799 

Ohio  as  a  minister.  About  1806,  Mr.  Dobbins,  a  licentiate 
from  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas — "from  South  Carolina" — 
was  preaching  near  Chillicothe,  Ohio.  In  1836  Robert  B. 
Dobbins  was  a  missionary  in  Illinois,  at  Knoxville. 

Sprague  IV,   125. 

Minutes,   Gen.   Assembly,   1836. 

John  Miller 

Tyler,  in  his  Life  of  Patrick  Henry  [American  Statesmen] , 
p.  371,  says: — "So  widespread  was  the  desire  to  hear  Mr. 
Henry,  that  even  the  college  in  the  next  county — the  college 
of  Hampden  Sidney — suspended  its  work  for  the  day,  and 
thus  enabled  all  its  members,  the  president  himself,  the  pro- 
fessors and  the  students  to  hurry  over  to  Charlotte  Court- 
house [March  court,  1799].  One  of  those  students,  John 
Miller  of  South  Carolina,  according  to  an  account  said  to  have 
been  given  by  him  forty  years  afterwards,  having  with  his 
companions  reached  the  village,  and  having  learned  that  Mr. 
Henry  would  speak  in  the  porch  of  a  tavern  fronting  the  large 
court  green,  pushed  his  way  through  the  gathering  crowd, 
and  secured  the  pedestal  of  a  pillar  where  he  stood  within 
eight  feet  of  him."  By  the  account,  Mr.  Henry  seemed  very 
infirm  (he  was  only  sixty-three  years  old),  began  his  speech 
with  difficulty,  but  soon  warmed  up.  This  was  Patrick  Hen- 
ry's last  speech — when  the  boy,  John  Randolph,  was  put  up 
to  answer  him.  Mr.  Tyler  got  this  story  from  the  Fontaine 
manuscript  at  Cornell,  pretty  good  evidence. 

If   John   Miller   "of   South   Carolina"   was   a   student   at 

Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1799,  he  may  have  come  with 

Dobbins  and  Montgomery. 

Many  years  ago,  i  '  before  the  war, ' '  somebody  said,  '  If  So-and-So  had 
been  a  Southern  "Whig  or  Democrat,  instead  of  a  New  Englander,  he 
would  have  been  written  up  long  since.'  We  can  hardly  imagine  now 
that  any  such  remark  was  ever  made.  But  close  investigation  of  our 
books  printed  around  1850  will  show  something  of  what  this  New  Eng- 
land protestant  had  in  mind.  For  instance,  Judge  Nathan  Crosby's 
excellent  " Annual  Obituary  Notices,"  Boston,  1859,  contains  a  sketch 
of  John  Miller  of  Cumberland,  who  died  in  1858,  aet.  73 — "There  was 
nothing  contracted,  nothing  little  or  low  about  him.     He  was  a  Virginia 


1799]  109 

gentleman  in  a  lofty  sense  of  that  term.  But  his  chief  excellence  was 
his  sincere  Christian  piety. ' '  Mr.  Miller,  by  Judge  Crosby 's  account, 
had  been  a  student  at  Princeton,  had  studied  law,  but  being  a  man  of 
ample  fortune  had  employed  himself  in  plantation  affairs.  It  seems 
likely  enough  that  this  was  the  John  Miller  of  Moses  Coit  Tyler 's  story : 
he  would  have  been  about  fifteen  years  old  in  1799.  In  1821  this  same 
John  Miller,  we  will  guess,  was  of  the  Board's  committee  to  govern 
Hampden  Sidney  ad  interim.  It  is  ludicrous,  not  to  say  tragical,  how 
we  have  let  go  of  our  records  in  the  community.  Granted  that  a  war 
may  be  righteous,  inevitably  in  the  process  gold  disappears  with  the 
dross. 

Nicholas  Cabell,  Jr. 

b.  1780,  d.  1809.  Son  of  Colonel  Nicholas  Cabell  of  Nelson 
County;  educated  by  tutors  at  home,  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  in  1798  and  1799,  and  at  William  and  Mary  in  1800 
and  1801.  'Gov.  Wm.  H.  Cabell  thought  that  he  had  natur- 
ally the  best  mind  of  any  of  the  brotherhood.'  While  he  was 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  Dr.  Archibald  Alexander  was  president 
and  took  a  great  interest  in  him.  Leaving  college  he  took 
charge  of  his  father 's  private  affairs,  which  during  his  father 's 
long  public  life  had  become  somewhat  embarrassed.  His 
strict  business  habits,  and  his  practical  progressive  system 
of  agriculture  soon  enabled  him  to  clear  the  estate  of  every  en- 
cumbrance. He  inherited  this  estate — the  'Liberty  Hall'  part 
— in  1803.  His  health  was  already  beginning  to  fail  and 
he  died  young.  He  had  married  a  Presbyterian  and  became 
a  Presbyterian.  His  only  son,  Nathaniel  Francis  Cabell,  a 
remarkable  man,  spent  much  time  over  family  history  and 
that  is  one  reason  why  such  full  notices  can  be  given  of  mem- 
bers of  this  family  who  were  students  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College. 

Brown,  Cabells,  p.  267. 

Griffin  Lumpkin 

This  name  appears  on  Board  Minutes,  April  1799.  From 
1805  to  1807,  Griffin  Lumpkin  of  Nottoway  County,  was  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Delegates. 


110  [1799 

William  Lewis  Venable 

b.  1780,  d.  about  1824.  Son  of  Nathaniel  Venable  of  Prince 
Edward  County.  From  1807  to  1823,  William  L.  Venable  was 
a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  and  an  active  Trustee. 
He  was  a  merchant  and  lived  at  a  place  called  "Haymarket" 
in  Prince  Edward  County,  to  the  east  of  Farmville.  The 
college  has  a  photograph  of  a  portrait  of  Mr.  Venable,  show- 
ing him  to  have  been  a  man  of  fine  countenance. 

Benjamin  R.  Montgomery 

"Was  born  in  Abbeville  District,  South  Carolina  about  the 
year  1782.  His  academic  education  was  conducted  solely  by 
his  mother;  and  I  am  informed  that  she  prepared  him  for 
admission  to  Hampden  Sidney  College,  where  he  was  received 
in  1799.  He  entered  the  ministry  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  1803.  I  know  not  the  field  of  his  ministerial  labors  before 
his  call  to  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Camden,  1809.  Noth- 
ing but  the  importance  of  uniting  the  pastoral  relation  of  the 
young  and  feeble  church  at  Columbia  with  the  Professor's 
chair  in  college  could  have  induced  him  to  leave  Camden. 
At  a  meeting  of  the  Trustees  of  South  Carolina  College  in 
November,  1811,  he  was  elected  Professor  of  Moral  Philosophy 
and  Logic,  and  in  November,  1818,  resigned  the  office.  Dr. 
Montgomery  was  an  officer  in  the  college  for  seven  years  and 
never  was  it  the  lot  of  one  to  pass  through  a  more  stormy 
period.  He  is  commended  by  the  Trustees  for  the  manner  in 
which  he  discharged  his  duties.  I  am  assured  by  distin- 
guished graduates  of  that  day  that  he  was  '  a  good  professor. ' 
I  am  not  aware  that  he  published  anything.  He  died  at  Key 
West,  August  27th,  1823." 

Maximilian  Laborde,  "History  of  South  Carolina  College," 
(Univ.  of  South  Carolina),  p.  86. 


Appended  is  Montgomery's  Valedictory  Address,  spoken  September 
26,  1799.  This  graceful  composition  seems  to  have  been  the  work  of 
Tutor  Speece,  who  was  a  natural  born  author.     A  few  years  later  Mr. 


1799]  111 

Speece,  using  his  pen  name  of  Philander,  addressed  a  letter  to  himself 
as  Editor  of  the  Virgimia  Religious  Magazine,  published  at  Lexington, 
(see  Vol.  II,  year  1806,  p.  284),  in  which  letter  he  was  politely  explana- 
tory.    Mr.  Speece  said  to  "the  Editors" — 

Gentlemen,  looking  over  my  papers,  I  found  the  following  address, 
composed  for  and  delivered  by  a  young  gentleman  of  South  Carolina 
several  years  ago  at  his  leaving  the  College  of  Hampden  Sidney.  Its 
object  is  to  inculcate  good  morals  and  a  diligent  pursuit  of  useful  knowl- 
edge. Should  you  think  it  deserving,  please  to  give  it  a  place  in  the 
Magazine.  Hear  the  address: — 

The  days  of  my  academical  studies  are  completed.  The  period  is 
arrived  when  I  must  bid  a  final  adieu  to  friends  whom  I  love,  and  to 
scenes,  the  remembrance  of  which  will  never  be  erased  from  my  mind. 
The  task  is  painful,  but  it  must  be  attempted;  and  I  request  the  indul- 
gence of  my  audience  while  I  address  myself  more  particularly  to  those 
with  whom  I  have  been  so  lately  and  so  intimately  connected. 

My  Dear  Fellow   Students, 

The  bonds  which  have  united  us  are  now  about  to  be  dissolved;  the 
curtain  is  now  to  be  dropped  which  will  separate  us,  perhaps  forever. 
Permit  me  on  this  interesting  occasion  to  leave  with  you  a  few  reflect- 
ions, the  truth  and  importance  of  which  are  deeply  impressed  on  my 
own  mind.  Accept  this  last  proof  of  attachment,  the  greatest  of  which 
I  am  capable. 

To  the  President 

Honoured  and  Dear  Sir, 

When  I  am  about  to  leave  this  place,  no  longer  to  enjoy  the  benefit 
of  your  instructions,  it  is  a  pleasing  duty  to  express  in  this  publick 
manner  my  grateful  sense  of  the  many  obligations  you  have  conferred 
upon  me.  Your  mildness  and  condescension  in  the  execution  of  the  duties 
of  your  office,  as  President  of  this  institution,  your  unwearied  attention 
to  the  improvement  of  the  students  here  in  knowledge  and  good  morals, 
merit  the  highest  affection  and  respect  from  them  and  from  the  publick. 
The  wise  and  the  virtuous  will  not  withhold  the  tribute  so  justly  due. 
But  I  will  spare  your  sensibility  the  pain  of  a  particular  detail  on  this 
subject.  The  approbation  of  your  own  heart  is  infinitely  more  pleasing 
to  you  than  the  highest  praise  of  others,  though  most  deservedly  be- 
stowed. With  the  warmest  wishes  that  you  may  continue  to  enjoy  the 
blessings  of  health  and  repose,  and  that  you  may  be  eminently  useful  in 
the  work,  so  delightful  to  yourself  and  so  important  to  mankind,  of  train- 
ing up  youth  in  the  way  in  which  they  should  go,  I  bid  you,  honored  and 
dear  sir,  adieu. 

To  the  Trustees 

Permit  me,  gentlemen,  on  this  occasion  to  congratulate  you  as  trustees 
of  Hampden  Sidney,  on  the  flourishing  state  of  this  seminary  under  your 
care.  Your  diligent  attention  to  the  duties  attached  to  your  office  does 
not  fail  to  attract  the  notice,  and  gain  you  the  approbation  of  your 
fellow  citizens.  Convinced  that  the  diffusion  of  knowledge  is  essentially 
connected  with  the  welfare  of  your  country,  these  are  the  objects  of  your 


112  [1799 

benevolent  efforts.  The  intelligent  and  the  good  appreciate  their  merit. 
Their  gratitude  and  best  wishes  attend  you.  Go  on,  gentlemen,  in  your 
patriotiek  labours ;  and  may  they  continue  to  be  crowned  by  an  indulgent 
Providence  with  abundant  success. 

To  the  Tutors 

At  my  removal  from  this  seminary  the  tutors  have  a  just  claim  to  my 
acknowledgements;  and  I  shall  be  inexcusable  were  I  to  pass  them  by 
in  silence.  You  do  not,  gentlemen,  expect  from  me  the  strains  of  panegy- 
rick.  Give  me  leave  simply  to  observe,  that  your  faithful  performance 
of  the  duties  of  your  station  does  you  honour ;  and  that  by  your  manner 
of  doing  it  you  justly  possess  the  attachment  as  well  as  the  respect  of 
the  students.  I  know  you  have  the  promotion  of  useful  learning  much 
at  heart ;  and  it  cannot  but  afford  you  much  satisfaction  to  see  the  work 
of  your  hands  prosper.  With  all  the,  respect  of  the  pupil  and  the  affec- 
tion of  the  friend,  I  bid  you  farewell. 

Conclusion 

But  lest  I  should  put  the  patience  of  my  audience  to  too  great  a  trial, 
I  hasten  to  a  conclusion.  Farewell  then  to  this  beloved  retreat,  the  seat 
of  science,  and  of  peace;  where,  amidst  the  pleasures  of  literary  exer- 
cises, and  the  intercourse  of  friendship,  I  have  spent  so  many  days. 
Farewell  to  this  respectable  collection  of  ladies  and  gentlemen,  who  have 
so  repeatedly  honoured  us  with  their  presence,  and  animated  us  by  the 
smiles  of  their  approbation.  And  lastly,  with  the  sincerest  interest  for 
your  success  in  your  studies,  and  your  general  prosperity  through  life, 
I  bid  you,  my  dear  fellow  students,  most  cordially  farewell. 


Jl5tneteentl)  Century 


Vestigia  Nulla  ReZrorsum— Hampden 


1800 


Edward  Booker 

December  3rd,  1800,  Edward  Booker,  John  Moore,  and 
Ebenezer  Cummins  were  the  reorganizes  of  the  Union  So- 
ciety, lapsed  since  June,  1796.  The  Union  Society  Catalogue 
assigns  Edward  Booker  to  Prince  Edward  County.  At  this 
time  the  family  of  Booker  was  numerous  in  this  region,  being 
especially  strong  in  Amelia  County.  Edward  Booker  of  Cum- 
berland County  died  in  1801.  Edward  Booker  of  Prince  Ed- 
ward County  was  in  the  House  of  Delegates  1813-1820,  and 
this  was  doubtless  the  Edward  Booker  of  1800,  reviver  of  the 
Union  Society.  In  1834  Edward  Booker  of  Prince  Edward 
is  on  record  as  a  very  pronounced  Whig. 

William  Booker,  who  represented  Prince  Edward  County 
in  the  Convention  of  1776,  had  a  son  John  who,  it  is  very 
likely  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney.  William  Booker 
was  one  of  the  first  trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney.  The  late 
Dr.  William  D.  Booker  of  Baltimore  (class  of  '63)  was  a 
grandson  of  John  Booker. 

Edwin  Edmunds 

Of  Brunswick  County.  Mr.  Edmunds  died  young,  in  1807, 
leaving  one  son,  Edwin  Edmunds  of  '  Rotherwood,'  Prince 
Edward  County,  who  died  in  1877  at  the  age  of  seventy. 

Thomas  Harding  Ellis 

Son  of  Major  Josiah  Ellis  of  "Red  Hill,"  Amherst  County, 
and  elder  brother  of  Powhatan  Ellis.  Colonel  Thomas  H. 
Ellis  of  Richmond  (University  of  Virginia,  1833),  who  was 


1800]  115 

chiefly  instrumental  in  securing  for  the  University  the  paint- 
ing, "School  of  Athens/'  was  a  son  of  Thomas  H.  Ellis  of 
the  notice. 

Meade  II.  460-462. 

Southern  Literary  Messenger,  April  1863,  241ff. 

Alumni  Bulletin  of  the  Univ.  of  Va.  II,  90,  103. 

Patrick  Henry 

Patrick  Henry,  a  member  of  the  Union  Society  at  its  reor- 
ganization in  1800-1801,  was  a  son  of  Patrick  Henry  by  his 
second  marriage ;  born  1783,  died  1804.  Patrick  Henry,  Jr., 
married  Elvira  Cabell,  who  died  in  1858,  "one  of  the  best  and 
best  known  women  that  Virginia  has  produced. ' '  Her  second 
husband  was  James  Bruce  of  Halifax  County. 

Thomas  A.  Holcombe 

b.  1785,  d.  1843.  Son  of  Philemon  Holcombe  of  Prince 
Edward  County.  After  leaving  Hampden  Sidney  College  he 
studied  law  and  settled  in  Georgia.  A  severe  illness  sent  him 
home  to  Lynchburg.  He  then  conducted  a  classical  school 
for  a  few  years.  Returning  to  the  law,  he  practiced  that  pro- 
fession until  conscientious  scruples  caused  him  to  abandon  it. 
He  became  a  Presbyterian  and  a  notable  church  worker.  For 
a  few  years  he  was  Marshal  of  the  Chancery  Court,  but  the 
business  of  his  latter  years  was  that  of  a  merchant.  Captain 
Holcombe  died  suddenly,  an  hour  after  returning  to  his  home, 
in  excellent  spirits,  from  a  business  trip.  "His  temperament 
oeing  most  ardent  and  his  mind  active  and  energetic,  Captain 
Holcombe  carried  with  him  through  life  these  distinguishing 
traits,  infusing  them  into  all  of  his  undertakings. ' '  His  relig- 
ious convictions  were  thorough  and  of  a  practical  sort.  ' '  Cap- 
tain Holcombe  may  properly  be  denominated  the  father  of 
Temperance  in  Virginia — he  formed  a  Temperance  society  at 
Lynchburg,  made  public  speeches  ,distributed  tracts  and  trav- 
eled thousands  of  miles  preaching  those  wholesome  doctrines. 
Zealous  also  in  the  prosecution  of  his  secular  employments, 


116  [1800 

prompt  in  thought,  liberal  in  his  household,  ever  holding  in 
view  the  service  and  glory  of  God,"  Captain  Holcombe  was 
a  most  useful  and  a  most  charitable  man. 

Sketches  and  Eecollections   of  Lynchburg,   247-253. 

Samuel  Lockett 

Samuel  Lockett  of  Mecklenburg  County,  was  a  member  of 
the  Union  Society  at  its  reorganization  in  1800-1801.  Thomas 
Lockett,  possibly  his  brother,  is  listed  at  this  time  in  the  Union 
Society  Catalogue.  Samuel  Lockett  of  1800  was  no  doubt 
Col.  Samuel  L.  Lockett  of  Mecklenburg  (House  of  Delegates, 
1826-1828)  who  married  a  daughter  of  Francis  Watkins,  clerk 
of  Prince  Edward  court,  and  a  charter  Trustee  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College.     Samuel  L.  Lockett  died  in  1847. 

Edward  Mayo 

b.  1782,  d.  1847.  It  is  supposed  that  Edward  Mayo  was  a 
son  of  Joseph  Mayo  of  Fine  Creek  Mills,  Powhatan  County, 
son  of  Major  William  Mayo,  the  emigrant.  There  was  an 
Edward  Mayo,  member  of  the  American  Whig  Society  at 
Princeton  in  1808.  In  1801  Edward  Mayo  was  a  member  of 
the  Union  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney.  His  brother  Eobert 
Mayo  is  not  listed  in  any  Hampden  Sidney  Catalogue.  But 
it  is  stated  (Nat.  Cyclopaedia  of  American  Biography,  X,  284) 
that  Eobert  Mayo  "studied  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  and 
was  graduated  at  William  and  Mary  College  in  1803." 
Robert  Mayo  graduated  M.  D.  at  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania in  1808.  He  settled  at  Richmond,  and  after  some 
years  of  practice  gave  up  medicine  for  journalism.  In  1830 
Dr.  Mayo  removed  to  Washington,  where  later  he  had  a  place 
in  the  Treasury  Department.  He  was  the  author  of  many 
books — "An  Epitome  of  Ancient  Geography  amd  History," 
1815;  "A  New  System  of  Mythology,"  4  vols.,  Philadelphia, 
1839;  "Political  Sketches  of  Eight  Years  in  Washington," 
1839;  "Synopsis  of  the  Commercial  and  Revenue  System  of 


1800]  117 

the  United  States/'  2  vols.,  1847,  etc.  Dr.  Mayo  was  born 
in  1784  and  died  in  1864.  His  "Political  Sketches  of  Eight 
Years  in  Washington,"  is  a  remarkable  book,  an  indictment 
of  General  Jackson's  Mexican  policy.  Dr.  Mayo  had  come 
to  Washington  as  a  Jackson  man.  He  had  difficulties  in  the 
government  service,  and  came  out  as  an  independent  Whig. 

John  Moore 

John  Moore,  assigned  to  Lunenburg  County  in  Union  So- 
ciety Catalogue,  was  in  1800  one  of  the  three  reorganizes  of 
the  Union  Society. 

John  Yelverton  Tabb 

Son  of  John  Tabb  of  Amelia  County,  one  of  the  Trustees 
of  Hampden  Sidney  Academy.  John  Y.  Tabb  was  the  grand- 
father of  John  Banister  Tabb,  the  poet,  called  "Father  Tabb." 
John  Y.  Tabb,  after  studying  at  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
was  at  William  and  Mary,  1803. 

William  and  Mary  College  Quarteily,  XIII,  126. 


1801 


Claiborne  Barksdale 

Son  of  Col.  Claiborne  Barksdale  of  Charlotte  County.  Born 
1783.  Merchant  and  farmer.  Died  in  1838,  near  Clarkton, 
Halifax  County. 

Dr.   Hooper's  Manuscript. 

'Robert  Rives  was  born  in  1764  in  Sussex  County.  He 
joined  the  army  in  1781  and  served  as  a  private  at  Yorktown. 
After  the  war  he  entered  the  store  of  Colonel  Richard  Baker 
at  South  Quay.  The  late  Hon.  Sterling  Claiborne  of  Amherst 
used  to  say  that  this  was  against  his  mother's  wishes,  but  her 
old  friend  and  legal  adviser,  Col.  Augustine  Claiborne,  told 
her  to  let  him  alone.  In  the  course  of  a  few  years  he  entered 
the  store  of  Blow  and  Barksdale  at  Charlotte  Courthouse. 
Here  he  is  said  to  have  worked  very  faithfully  and  energeti- 
cally, laying  the  foundation  of  his  commercial  education.  In 
1790  Donald  &  Burton  of  London,  chose  him  for  their  factor 
in  the  buying  up  of  country  tobacco.' 

Brown,  p.  220. 

William  H.  Barr 

b.  1778,  d.  1843.  Son  of  James  Barr  of  Iredell  County, 
North  Carolina,  who  was  killed  by  the  falling  of  a  tree  when 
William  Barr  was  very  young.  Prepared  for  college  at  James 
Hall's  'Clio's  Nursery,'  near  his  home,  William  Barr  entered 
Hampden  Sidney  College  at  a  favorable  time,  when  the  insti- 
tution was  being  revived  by  Alexander.  He  studied  theology 
under  Dr.  James  Hall,  and  for  more  than  thirty  years  was 
pastor  of  Upper  Long  Cane  Church,  Abbeville  District,  South 
Carolina.  Dr.  Barr  (D.  D.,  University  of  Georgia,  1824)  was 
a  minister  of  power  and  of  idiosyncracies.  He  discouraged 
'revivals,'  building  up  his  church  steadily  without  them.     He 


1801]  119 

did  not  believe  in  Sunday  Schools  as  such  schools  were  often 
in  the  old  times,  that  is,  schools  kept  on  Sunday  for  the 
literary  instruction  of  children.  He  visited  very  little  in  his 
large  congregation,  his  farm  occupying  much  of  his  time. 
His  pronunciation  was  very  old  fashioned.  But  what  he  said 
was  important  and  went  a  long  way. 

Sprague  IV,  384-387. 

Dr.  Howe  (Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina,  II, 
735-741)  gives  a  full  account  of  Dr.  Barr,  material  drawn 
from  the  reminiscences  of  Chancellor  Bowie  of  Alabama. 
By  that  account  it  is  clear  that  Dr.  Barr  was  an  extraordinary 
preacher,  and  remarkable  for  the  force  of  his  character  gener- 
ally. Judge  Bowie  remembered  that  his  pronunciation  was 
rather  antiquated  (merely  adding  power  to  his  remarks),  that 
he  was  somewhat  dreadful  in  his  opposition  to  dancing  and 
that  he  took  little  interest  in  the  Sunday  School,  much  pre- 
ferring the  old-fashioned  catechisings  around  the  congrega- 
tion. 

William  Barr  was  born  in  Rowan  County,  North  Carolina, 
in  the  year  1778.  He  was  the  son  of  James  Barr  who  had 
removed  from  Iredell,  somewhat  to  the  north.  His  mother 
was  a  sister  of  the  famous  Dr.  McCorkle,  of  that  region, 
preacher  and  teacher  and  man  of  great  wisdom.  Judge  Bowie 
records  that  William  Barr's  diploma  bore  the  date,  " April, 
1801/'  The  'middle  name'  was  coming  into  vogue  then. 
There  is  a  tradition  that  students  at  Hampden  Sidney  at  that 
time  liked  to  choose  either  Hampden  or  Sidney  as  a  middle 
name.  Just  the  other  day  a  descendant  of  William  Crawford 
(c.  1805),  said  that  after  leaving  Hampden  Sidney  his  name 
was  William  Sidney  Crawford.  Certainly,  Dr.  Barr  was 
christened  plain  William,   and  took  the  name  Hampden. 

Ebenezer  Cummins 

Son  of  Francis  Cummins,  D.  D.,  of  South  Carolina  and 
Georgia,  whose  parents  had  emigrated  from  County  Tyrone 
and  County  Down,  north  of  Ireland.    In  1802  Ebenezer  Cum- 


120  [1801 

mins  seems  to  have  been  settled  as  a  minister  in  Abbeville 
District,  South  Carolina.  In  June  of  that  year  he  was  present 
at  a  '  great  meeting  held  in  the  District  of  Spartanburg,  South 
Carolina,'  which  he  described  in  a  letter  printed  at  p.  404ff, 
Foote's  "Sketches  of  North  Carolina."  There  attended  at 
this  meeting  thirteen  Presbyterian  preachers — among  them 
Messrs.  Williamson  and  Dixon  (no  doubt  William  Williamson 
and  Hugh  Dickson).  Ebenezer  Cummins 's  father,  Dr.  Fran- 
cis Cummins,  was  a  remarkable  man,  as  teacher  and  preacher ; 
'many  of  the  most  distinguished  men  of  South  Carolina  and 
Georgia  were  his  pupils.  Of  his  children  the  first  married  a 
native  of  Delaware,  the  second  a  native  of  Maryland,  the  third 
a  native  of  South  Carolina,  the  fourth  a  native  of  North  Caro- 
lina, the  fifth  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  sixth,  Massachusetts, 
seventh,  Virginia,  eighth,  Connecticut.' 
Sprague  III,  418-420. 

John  Daugherty 

Elected  a  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1801,  John 
Daugherty  "never  appeared  in  Society."  [Union  Society 
Minutes.]  Why  so?  Was  this  choice,  negligence,  untoward 
circumstance,  or  what?  Who  and  whence  was  John  Daugh- 
erty?    The  record  sayeth  not. 

Samuel  Hobson 

Probably  a  son  of  Samuel  Hobson  of  Powhatan  County, 
who  died  in  1808.  Union  Society  Catalogue  assigns  Samuel 
Hobson  to  Cumberland  County.  In  1834  Samuel  Hobson  of 
Stony  Point  Mills,  Cumberland  County,  was  writing  to  the 
Farmers'  Register  (vol.  II,  p.  536). 

William  S.  Morton 

Son  of  Major  James  Morton  of  Prince  Edward  County, 
Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  William  S.  Morton 
was  a  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1801.  Having  studied 
for  awhile  under  Dr.  Goodridge  Wilson  of  Prince  Edward,  he 


1801]  121 

graduated  in  medicine  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  in 
1812.  Dr.  Morton's  home  was  in  Prince  Edward  County  for 
many  years.  Some  time  before  his  death  in  1865  he  had 
settled  at  a  place  on  the  Appomattox  river  in  Cumberland 
County,  called  "High  Hill."  The  late  Dr.  J.  D.  Eggleston  of 
Prince  Edward  County  began  the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr. 
Morton  at  that  place.  William  S.  Morton  was  interested  in 
the  material  development  of  the  country  in  which  he  lived. 
He  was  a  trifle  pessimistic  about  the  way  agriculture  was 
going  on  in  the  region  toward  1850.  See  his  articles  in 
Farmers'  Register  and  his  reports  to  the  Agricultural  Bureau 
of  the  Patent  Office.  But  it  is  not  every  physician  who  can 
run  a  farm  as  it  ought  to  be  run.  'High  Hill'  is  now  a  first- 
rate  investment.  Dr.  Morton  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the 
Mineralogical  Society  of  Virginia,  a  project  broached  in  1836 
at  Prince  Edward  Court  House.  The  Society's  chemist  was 
John  W.  Draper  who  by  this  agency  was  brought  to  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  [See  Farmers'  Register  IV,  315ff.]  Dr. 
Morton  was  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  for  about 
forty  years. 

John  T.  Nash 

A  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1801 ,  the  name  also 
appearing  on  minutes  of  that  Society  in  1802.  Union  Society 
catalogue  lists  'Dr.  Nash  of  Prince  Edward  County'  in  1812. 
He  was  doubtless  at  that  time  an  honorary  member.  Colonel 
John  Nash,  Jr.,  who  died  about  1802,  had  been  from  1775  a 
Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  Academy  and  College. 

John  Holcombe  Overstreet 

John  H.  Overstreet,  listed  as  a  student  in  1801,  was  Major 
Overstreet  of  the  neighborhood.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Union  Society  in  1801.     Major  Overstreet  died  in  1815. 

John  Sims 

Member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1801.  John  Sims  of  Char- 
lotte County  died  in  1804. 


122  [1801 

Robert  F.  N.  Smith 

Member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1801.  Very  likely  a  son 
of  John  Blair  Smith;  full  name  perhaps  Robert  Francis  Nash 
Smith.  John  Blair  Smith  died  in  1799.  His  son  Robert 
graduated  at  Princeton  in  1800 ;  and  it  may  be  guessed  spent 
some  time  after  the  fall  of  1800  at  the  home  of  his  grand- 
father, Mr.  John  Nash  of  Prince  Edward  County.  He  was 
for  at  least  a  year  an  active  member  of  the  Union  Society. 
Robert  F.  Smith  became  a  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  church, 
was  pastor  of  the  church  at  Snow  Hill,  Maryland,  where  he 
died  in  1824. 


1802 


William  Austin  Allen 

William  A.  Allen  of  Cumberland  County  died  in  1834.  The 
Aliens  of  Cumberland  having  been  so  much  identified  with 
Hampden  Sidney,  we  will  say  that  William  Austin  Allen, 
A.  B.,  1802,  was  of  that  county. 

George  Craig 

George  Craig  was  in  the  House  of  Delegates  from  Lunen- 
burg County,  1811-1812.  It  is  likely  that  he  was  a  member 
of  the  Union  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1802. 
It  would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  he  was  a  son  of  Mr. 
Craig,  minister  of  Cornwall  parish,  Charlotte  County,  who 
was  pretty  certainly  an  antagonist  of  Hampden  Sidney  at  its 
first  foundation. 

Lafayette  Henry 

b.  1786,  d.  before  1850.  Son  of  Patrick  Henry  by  his  second 
marriage.  Lafayette  or  Fayette  Henry  was  in  the  House  of 
Delegates  from  Campbell  County,  1812-1813.  Early  in  1787, 
at  the  end  of  his  fifth  term  as  governor  of  the  State,  Patrick 
Henry  settled  in  Prince  Edward  County  'where  he  could  be 
near  Hampden  Sidney  College  and  complete  the  education  of 
his  younger  sons.'  [Life  of  Henry  by  William  Wirt  Henry, 
II,  305.]  Mr.  Henry  lived  in  Prince  Edward  County  longer 
than  in  Charlotte  County.  He  established  his  sons  in  the 
habit  of  coming  to  Hampden  Sidney  College,  which  they  fol- 
lowed after  their  father 's  death.  Six  sons  of  Mr.  Henry  were 
students  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

William  Rice 

Probably  a  son  of  William  Rice  of  Charlotte  County  who 
died  in  1820.    William  Rice,  Jr.,  it  is  stated,  was  a  physician, 


124  [1802 

and  a  member  of  the  Virginia   Senate  from  the   Charlotte 
district,  1813-1815,  dying  about  1846. 

Dr.  Hooper's  manuscript  assigns  William  Rice  to  Bedford 
County,  gives  the  year  or  his  birth  as  1762,  and  explains  the 
presence  of  his  name  on  the  Union  Society  roll  by  honorary 
membership. 

Henry  E.  Scott 

Thomas  Scott,  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  who 
died  in  1805,  married  the  widow  of  Colonel  Isaac  Read.  Their 
son,  Henry  E.  Scott,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about 
1802,  lived  in  Charlotte  County  or  very  close  by  in  Prince 
Edward  County.  The  middle  initial  in  this  region,  at  the 
turn  of  the  eighteenth  century,  like  as  not  was  nothing  but 
a  distinguishing  mark.  But  it  is  pretty  certain  that  Henry 
E.  Scott's  full  name  was  Henry  Embra  Scott.  A  few  years 
ago  the  Library  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  secured  an  in- 
teresting collection  of  old  farm  journals,  early  volumes  of  the 
Southern  Planter,  etc.,  that  had  belonged  to  Mr.  Henry  E. 
Scott  of  Prince  Edward  County,  who  was  probably  a  son  of 
Henry  E.  Scott  (1802).  You  cannot  trace  the  farmer  by  the 
offices  he  fills ;  his  life  is  of  a  piece,  rather  one  with  the  land- 
scape. 

Henry  E.  Scott  of  Scottsburg,  Halifax  County,  was  writing 
to  the  Farmers'  Register  in  1834  (vol.  II,  p.  312). 

Joseph  Watkins 

Assigned  to  Charlotte  County  in  Union  Society  Catalogue. 
Joseph  Watkins  was  graduated  M.  D.  at  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania  in  1810.  It  is  possible  that  Joseph  Watkins 
and  Addison  Waddel,  fellow  students  at  Hampden  Sidney, 
were  fellow  students  at  Philadelphia. 

The  probability  is  that  Joseph  Watkins  was  a  cousin  of 
Francis  Watkins  of  Prince  Edward  County,  and  settled  in 
Goochland  County:    born  1787,  died  1854. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 


1803 


Samuel  D.  Leake 

William  Leake  of  the  Goochland  region  about  1688,  had  a 
son  named  Walter,  who  had  a  son  Josiah.  Captain  Josiah 
Leake  was  a  student  at  Dickinson  College,  Pennsylvania;  he 
studied  law  and  settled  in  South  Carolina,  but  returned  to 
Goochland  County.  He  was  a  member  of  the  House  of  Dele- 
gates. His  son,  Samuel  D.  Leake,  was  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  graduating  in  1803.  In  1804  he  was  teacher 
of  the  Grammar  School  at  the  college,  and  had  occasion  to 
switch  John  Peter  Mettauer.  Mr.  Leake  died  at  his  home  in 
Goochland  after  1843.  He  was  the  father  of  Judge  William 
Josiah  Leake,  of  the  Richmond  Chancery  Court. 

Samuel  D.  Leake's  cousin,  Dr.  Samuel  D.  Leake,  who  had 
just  completed  his  medical  studies  at  Philadelphia,  died  in 
Goochland  County,  1808  [Richmond  Argus,  Nov.  8,  1808]. 
These  were  near  relations  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Leake  of  Albe- 
marle, one  of  the  first  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney. 

Robert  P.  Smith 

Dr.  Robert  L.  Smith,  brother  of  Samuel  Stanhope  and  John 
Blair  Smith,  lived  in  Prince  Edward  County  from  about  1796 
to  1804.  During  that  time  he  was  a  Trustee  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College.  It  is  possible  that  Robert  P.  Smith  was  his 
son.  It  is  also  possible  that  Robert  P.  Smith  was  a  son  of 
Robert  Smith  of  the  Cumberland  Committee  of  Safety,  1776. 
There  were  several  families  of  Smiths  influential  in  the  region 
about  1800.  There  were  the  Cumberland  Smiths;  there  were 
the  Powhatan  Smiths;  there  was  Francis  Smith,  merchant  of 
Prince  Edward  County,  on  Appomattox  River,  and  there  was 
Martin  Smith,  merchant  of  Prince  Edward  County,  settled 
near  the  old  French's  Store,  or  Kingsville.  The  college  lads 
bothered  Mr.  Martin  Smith  a  good  deal.     He  moved  to  Ken- 


126  [1803 

tucky  before  1816.  The  tradition  is  that  Martin  Smith,  on 
the  lookout  for  apple  pilferers,  shot  his  son  in  the  leg.  One 
of  the  topical  farce  performers  of  that  golden  age,  on  the 
college  stage,  (so  Major  Andrew  Venable  said),  remarked 
apropos : 

'Martin   Smith  is  one  bad  man, 

And  all  the  neighbors  knows  it — 
Shot  his  son  with  his  own  gun, 
Which  very  plainly  shows  it.' 

Benjamin  Holt  Rice 

b.  1782,  d.  1856.  Brother  of  John  Holt  Rice,  under  whose 
direction  he  received  the  whole  of  his  education.  In  1809, 
Benjamin  Rice  was  assistant  teacher  in  a  school  in  Granville 
County,  North  Carolina;  from  1804  he  had  been  assistant 
in  his  brother's  school  at  Charlotte  Court  House.  He  then 
taught  a  while  at  Newberne  in  North  Carolina,  and  at 
Raleigh  (in  the  school  of  Dr.  William  McPheeters).  About 
1813,  having  begun  work  as  a  minister  in  Eastern  North 
Carolina,  he  began  preaching  at  Petersburg  in  Virginia; 
organized  a  church  there  and  remained  in  charge  of  it  some 
seventeen  years.  His  influence  at  Petersburg  and  in  that 
region  was  powerful.  The  Established  church  had  become 
thoroughly  disorganized  there,  and  Dr.  Rice  was  an  evan- 
gelical minister,  not  only  able  to  preach  but  to  make  friends. 
In  1829  he  was  Moderator  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  in  the  same  year  went  to  New 
York,  as  pastor  of  the  Pearl  Street  Church.  From  1833  to 
1847  he  was  pastor  at  Princeton,  New  Jersey.  The  last  six 
years  of  his  life  were  spent  at  Hampden  Sidney,  in  charge 
of  that  congregation.  He  was  stricken  with  paralysis  in  the 
pulpit  of  the  College  Church  and  died  shortly  afterwards. 

Dr.  William  S.  White  drew  a  comparison  between  John 
Holt  Rice  and  his  brother  Benjamin:  "The  former  was  the 
more  studious,  the  latter  was  the  more  popular  preacher. 
Dr.  B.  H.  Rice  made  a  more  favorable  impression  on  strangers 
at  first  sight.  He  had  more  wit  and  humor.  A  man  so  emi- 
nent and  yet  so  approachable  is  very  rarely  met  with." 


1803]  127 

Sprague  IV,  625. 

Hageman,  Princeton  and  its  Institutions,  II,  133-143. 

Presbyterian  Magazine,  VI,  551-57 — Excellent  charac- 
ter sketch.  Dr.  Ben  Rice  was  a  brother-in-law  of 
Archibald  Alexander. 


It  may  not  be  well  to  say  much  about  church  honors.  Vanity  is  less 
fitting,  if  no  less  apparent,  in  that  connection  than  in  some  others. 
But  it  can  do  no  harm  to  list  those  Moderators  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  the  Presbyterian  church  before  1830  who  were  in  one  way  or 
another  identified  with  Hampden  Sidney  College,  viz.: 

1798  John  Blair  Smith 

1799 Samuel  Stanhope  Smith 

[Meeting  at  Winchester,  Virginia] 

1807 Archibald  Alexander 

1809  Drury  Lacy 

1816  James  Blythe 

1819 John  Holt  Rice 

1821  William  Hill 

1829 „ Benjamin  Holt  Rice 

For  many  years  it  was  customary  for  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  to  meet  at  Philadelphia.  The  meeting  of  1799 
would  have  been  held  there,  but  for  the  yellow  fever. 

Thomas  Venable 

Youngest  son  of  Nathaniel  Venable,  Trustee  1775,  etc. 
Thomas  Venable  was  born  in  1782  and  died  young.  He  had 
fitted  himself  to  be  a  physician,  after  taking  his  bachelor's 
degree  at  Hampden  Sidney. 


1804 


William  Bowie  Cowan 

'William  Cowan  of  Lunenburg  [Trustee  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College,  1784-1806]  was  no  orator,  but  in  cases  requiring 
legal  acumen  and  judgment,  he  was  by  many  preferred  to 
Patrick  Henry,  with  whom  he  practiced  in  the  same  courts 
for  many  years,  living  in  habits  of  intimacy  with  that  great 
man.  When  the  war  was  ended,  he  was  almost  entirely  oc- 
cupied in  collecting  moneys  due  to  the  Scotch  merchants,  who 
had  generally  gone  off  at  the  commencement  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. He  was  deeply  sensible  of  the  evils  of  slavery,  and  one 
day  said  to  me  that  there  was  a  secret  policy  in  the  minds 
of  some  leading  men  in  the  State  to  tax  slaves  very  heavily 
so  as  by  degrees  to  render  them  unprofitable.' 

Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,   Ed.   1855,  p.  139ff. 

John  Hook  was  a  man  of  wealth,  and  not  supposed  to  be  over-friendly 
to  the  American  cause.  In  1781,  Mr.  Venable,  an  army  commissary,  had 
taken  two  of  Hook's  steers.  The  act  had  not  been  strictly  legal  and  on 
the  establishment  of  peace,  Hook  retained  Mr.  Cowan  to  bring  an  action 
of  trespass  against  Mr.  Venable  in  the  District  Court  held  at  New 
London.  Mr.  Henry  appeared  for  the  defendant,  and  is  said  to  have 
deported  himself  in  this  cause  in  a  very  ridiculous  but  effective  manner. 
He  carried  the  jury  to  Yorktown,  etc.  "Wiat  notes  are  these  that 
disturb  the  general  joy  and  silence  the  acclamations  of  victory?  They 
are  the  notes  of  John  Hook,  hoarsely  bawling  through  the  American 
camp,  Beef !  Beef !  Beef !  ' '  The  clerk  of  the  court,  Mr.  Steptoe,  had 
to  withdraw  to  the  green,  his  risibles  perforce.  "Jemmy  Steptoe,  what 
ails  ye,  mon?"  asked  Mr.  Hook.  "Just  wait  till  Billy  Cowan  gets  up, 
he'll  show  him  the  la'."  Mr.  Cowan  got  up,  but  could  scarcely  be  heard 
for  the  noise.  The  cause  was  decided  almost  by  acclamation,  the  jury 
returning  almost  instantly  for  the  defendant.  And  then  by  degrees 
people  began  to  think  that  John  Hook  was  maybe  right. 

Old  Virginia  Clerks,  74-76. 

William  Bowie  Cowan,  son  of  William  Cowan,  was  a  stu- 
dent at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1804.  William  Cowan,  who  died 
in  1806,  left  a  remarkable  will,  which  is  recorded  at  Lunen- 
burg Court  House.    His  children  were  William  Bowie  Cowan 


1804]  129 

and  Grizel  Bowie  Cowan.  William  Cowan  was  for  a  time  a 
Methodist  preacher.  He  was  a  man  of  sincere  piety,  and  of 
this  his  will  is  plain  testimony. 

William  H.  Brodnax 

In  several  accounts  of  the  life  of  William  H.  Brodnax  the 
statement  is  that  "he  was  probably  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  which  conferred  upon  him  the  honorary  de- 
gree of  A.  M.  in  1830."  That  is  no  proof,  but  it  is  not  un- 
likely that,  during  the  prosperous  years  under  Mr.  Alexander, 
William  Brodnax  of  Brunswick  was  at  the  college.  William 
H.  Brodnax  was  born  in  Brunswick  in  1786  and  died  in  Din- 
widdie  in  1834.  He  studied  law  at  Petersburg  under  Sterling 
Ruffin,  along  with  Winfield  Scott  and  Thomas  Ruffin  (Judge 
Ruffin  of  North  Carolina) .  Settling  in  Dinwiddie  County,  he 
bought  "Kingston,"  a  celebrated  plantation,  and  made  it  his 
home.  His  practice  was  large,  in  Dinwiddie,  Brunswick, 
Greensville  and  that  region.  Taking  an  interest  in  the  militia, 
he  rose  to  be  Brigadier  General,  was  chief  marshal  at  York- 
town  when  Lafayette  was  there  in  1824,  and  was  in  command 
of  the  troops  to  suppress  the  Nat.  Turner  insurrection.  Gen- 
eral Brodnax  was  very  much  interested  in  the  affairs  of  the 
American  Colonization  Society.  He  was  a  Whig  in  politics, 
and  was  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1829.  He  was  one 
of  those  Virginians  who  has  left  a  reputation  difficult  to  define 
or  to  "document" — of  great  force  of  character  and  of  kindly, 
generous  feelings. 

William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly  XIV,  57. 

John  P.  Branch  Historical  Papers  [Randolph  Macon]  III,  14. 

Abner  Crump 

Dr.  Mettauer,  in  one  of  his  lists  of  the  founders  of  the 
Philanthropic  Society,  put  down  Abner  Crump  of  Powhatan. 
Powhatan  was  Crump  headquarters  for  a  good  many  years. 
Abner  Crump,  an  officer  of  the  Revolution  and  a  member  of 
♦he  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  was  Clerk  of  Powhatan  from 


130  [1804 

1786  to  1802.  The  clerk's  office  was  at  his  house,  eight  miles 
from  the  Court  House.  Colonel  Crump  was  a  bachelor,  we 
think.  Abner  Crump  of  the  notice  was  a  nephew  of  his,  per- 
haps. Dr.  Abner  Crump  Hopkins  of  Powhatan  (a  well-known 
minister  of  the  Presbyterian  church),  and  his  son,  the  Rev. 
Abner  Crump  Hopkins,  were  students  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

William  Smith 

b.  1780,  d.  1851.  Lived  at  Charlotte  Court  House,  and  kept 
the  tavern  there.  Smithville  was  the  official  name  of  the 
village  for  many  years.  It  is  quite  to  be  expected  that  the 
owner  of  the  tavern  was  a  member  of  the  legislature,  but 
William  Smith  of  Charlotte  seems  not  to  have  been  in  politics 
that  way. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

But  it  is  more  likely  that  William  Smith,  1804,  was  William 
B.  Smith,  a  son  of  Francis  Smith,  merchant  at  Farmville, 
whose  place  was  called  l '  Scott-green. ' '  Dr.  William  B.  Smith 
was  very  well-known  m  Prince  Edward  and  Cumberland  about 
1840. 

Addison  Waddel 

b.  1785,  d.  1855.  Son  of  the  Rev.  James  Waddel.  Addison 
Waddel  followed  his  medical  studies  at  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania,  graduating  in  1809.  He  settled  at  Staunton. 
Around  1832  he  was  delivering  lectures  on  medical  jurispru- 
dence at  Judge  Briscoe  Baldwin's  Staunton  law  school.  "A 
learned  and  a  wise  physician,  and  a  deeply  read  metaphysi- 
cian and  theologian, ' '  so  his  son  described  him.  Dr.  Addison 
Waddel's  son,  Joseph  A.  Waddel  was  the  author  of  a  History 
of  Augusta  County,  one  of  the  most  thorough  of  County 
histories. 

Annals  of  Augusta  County,  p.  428,  p.  439. 


1805 


William  Segar  Archer 

b.  1789,  d.  1855.  Son  of  Major  John  Archer  of  Amelia 
County,  and  grandson  of  Colonel  William  Archer.  Major 
John  Archer  and  his  father  both  fought  in  the  Revolution; 
John  Archer,  aide  to  General  Wayne,  was  captured  by  Tarle- 
ton.  William  Archer  died  on  a  British  prison  ship  at  Norfolk. 
William  S.  Archer,  after  a  year  at  Hampden  Sidney,  about 
1805  went  to  William  and  Mary  and  graduated  there  in  1808. 
He  studied  law  and  was  soon  a  public  man.  Public  man  he 
continued  to  be  until  a  few  years  before  his  death.  From  1812 
to  1819  he  was  four  times  in  the  House  of  Delegates,  a  repre- 
sentative from  Amelia  County.  From  1820  to  1835  he  was 
in  Congress,  for  much  of  the  time  chairman  of  the  committee 
on  Foreign  Relations.  At  first  a  Jackson  Democrat,  Mr. 
Archer  became  a  Whig  in  1832.  From  1841  to  1847  he  was 
Senator  in  Congress,  and  chairman  of  the  Senate  Committee 
of  Foreign  Relations.  He  opposed  the  admission  of  Texas. 
From  1820  to  1839  William  S.  Archer  was  a  Trustee  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  He  was  a  punctilious  duelist.  His  home 
in  Amelia  County  was  called  "The  Lodge." 

Edward  Coles 

In  the  first  paragraph  of  Washburne's  Life  of  Edward 
Coles,  the  statement  is  made  that  "Edward  Coles  left  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  the  fall  of  1805."  Soon  thereafter  Ed- 
ward Coles  was  private  secretary  to  President  Madison  who 
sent  him  on  a  diplomatic  mission  to  Russia.  Returned  from 
Russia,  Mr.  Coles  (we  will  count  him  as  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney),  emanci- 
pated his  slaves  and  went  west  to  the  Illinois  country.     He 


132  [1805 

was  governor  of  Illinois  at  a  critical  time,  and  his  whole  career 
was  of  importance  in  the  history  of  his  country.  Governor 
Coles  was  born  in  1786  and  died  in  1868. 

Wiashbume's  Life  of  Coles  has  been  reprinted  in  Illinois  Hist. 
Soe.  Publications,  1921. 

Walter  Coles 

Dr.  Mettauer  in  his  enumeration  of  the  founders  of  the 
Philanthropic  Society  in  1805  lists  "Walter  Coles  of  Pittsyl- 
vania County.  Walter  Coles,  son  of  Colonel  Isaac  Coles  of 
Pittsylvania,  was  born  in  1790  and  died  in  1857.  He  was 
a  farmer  and  for  many  years  was  a  magistrate  in  his  county. 
During  the  war  of  1812  he  served  as  a  captain  of  riflemen  on 
the  northern  frontier.  Member  of  the  House  of  Delegates 
1833-34,  Walter  Coles  was  a  representative  in  Congress  on 
the  Democratic  side  from  1835  to  1845.  But  did  not  Dr. 
Mettauer  possibly  mean  to  add  Edward  Coles? 

William  S.  Crawford 

William  S.  Crawford,  clerk  of  Amherst  County  1791-1816, 
was  first  cousin  to  the  Hon.  William  H.  Crawford  of  Georgia. 
It  is  likely  that  William  S.  Crawford,  a  member  of  the  Union 
Society  in  1805  (and  of  the  teaching  staff  that  memorable 
year),  was  a  son  of  the  Clerk  of  Amherst.  The  Hon.  Kemp 
Plummer  (who  it  may  be  supposed  was  willing  to  employ 
Hampden  Sidney  students)  was  a  trustee  of  the  Warrenton, 
North  Carolina,  Academy  1810-1812,  during  which  time 
William  Crawford  was  principal.  In  1812,  Mr.  Crawford 
resigned  his  place  to  take  an  office  with  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment. In  1821,  William  S.  Crawford  was  a  member  of  Judge 
Creed  Taylor's  Law  School  in  Cumberland  County.  Plainly, 
these  are  mere  Crawford  items. 

Calendar  of  Board  Minutes,  p.  60. 

Journal  of  the  Law  School,  Richmond,  1822,  pp.  50-94. 

(It  is  said  that  the  "S."  of  the  name  stands  for  Sidney,  a  name 
assumed  by  Mr.  Crawford  in  honor  of  his  college.) 


1805]  133 

Edwin  Sandys 

Captain  William  Craghead  of  Lunenburg  County,  who  died 
in  1803,  mentioned  in  his  will  his  grandson,  Edwin  Sandys. 
George  Craghead  of  Lunenburg,  who  died  in  1851  (whose  are, 
it  is  supposed,  the  reminiscences  of  1776  given  by  Dr.  Foote) 
mentioned  in  his  will  lands  he  had  bought  of  Dr.  Edwin 
Sandys.  Dr.  Mettauer's  list  of  the  founders  of  the  Philan- 
thropic Society  in  1805,  includes  the  name  of  Edwin  Sandys. 
Sir  Edwin  Sandys  of  the  Virginia  Company  was  four  times 
married.  It  is  not  of  record  that  any  of  his  sons  came  to 
Virginia.  But  it  is  worth  noting  that  George  Sandys  trans- 
lated Ovid  in  Virginia,  and  that  "William  Munford  of  Meck- 
lenburg County  translated  Homer.  There  is  little  of  the 
logical  about  names.  Sir  Peyton  Skipwith  of  Mecklenburg 
County  had  a  son  named  Horatio  Bronte.  But  Charlotte 
Bronte's  father,  Patrick  Bronte,  on  leaving  Ireland,  changed 
his  name  from  Prunty. 


1806 


Henry  Chambers 

Born  in  Lunenburg  County,  1785;  graduated  at  William 
and  Mary,  1808.  Removed  to  Alabama.  Elected  to  the 
United  States  Senate,  1825.  Died  at  the  home  of  his  brother, 
in  Mecklenburg  County,  Va,  1825. 

Biog.  Dictionary  of  Congress. 

John  Peter  Mettauer 

Francis  Joseph  Mettauer,  of  an  old  medical  family  of 
Alsace,  came  to  Virginia  with  the  French  troops  of  our  Revo- 
lution. After  the  battle  of  Yorktown,  Dr.  Francis  Mettauer 
was  stationed  in  Prince  Edward  County  with  an  invalid  squad 
of  French  soldiers.  General  Robert  Lawson  and  others  per- 
suaded Dr.  Mettauer  to  make  Prince  Edward  County  his  home. 
His  son  John  Peter  Mettauer  was  born  in  the  year  1787,  so 
it  is  stated.  But  the  date  seems  too  early,  for  in  1804  John 
Peter  Mettauer  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  grammar 
school,  and  being  chastised  for  his  sins.  However  that  may 
be,  Mettauer  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  one  of 
the  organizers  of  the  Philanthropic  Society  in  1805.  He  made 
his  doctor's  degree  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  in  1809. 
"His  medical  education  was  carried  on  under  the  most  favor- 
able conditions  obtainable  in  America  at  that  time."  He 
settled  at  home  in  Prince  Edward  County  and  died  there  in 
1875.  Mettauer  is  already  a  legend.  He  was  unquestionably 
a  wonderful  surgeon.  For  years,  the  taverns  of  this  neigh- 
borhood were  crowded  with  his  patients,  come  from  near  and 
far.  For  years  Mettauer  lectured  at  his  medical  school  (under 
the  charter  of  Randolph  Macon  College),  and  wrote  for  the 
journals.  He  left  a  mass  of  manuscript  material,  especially 
a  work  on  surgery,  which  the  late  Dr.  George  Ben  Johnston 
had  planned  to  get  published.    Mettauer  is  now  a  legend.    It 


1806]  135 

is  not  known  with  exactness  where  his  grave  is.    He  wore  his 
stove  pipe  hat  continually  and  was  a  Methodist. 

President's  Address  to  the  American  Surgical  Association,  1905, 
by  George  Ben  Johnston. 

London  Cabell  Hives 

b.  1790,  d.  1870.  Son  of  Robert  Rives  of  Nelson  County. 
At  an  early  age  he  entered  Hampden  Sidney  and  afterwards 
William  and  Mary,  where  he  graduated.  Married  in  1815, 
he  lived  for  a  time  in  Lynchburg,  then  returned  to  Nelson 
County  and  tried  farming.  He  decided  to  study  medicine^ 
read  under  the  private  tuition  of  Dr.  Chapman  of  Philadel- 
phia, and  received  his  diploma  from  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania in  1820.  Dr.  Rives  practiced  his  profession  about 
nine  years  in  Virginia.  In  1829  he  settled  at  Cincinnati,  and 
lived  there  the  rest  of  his  long  life.  One  of  the  Cincinnati 
papers  wrote  of  him  after  his  death,  "No  physician  in  the 
history  of  this  city  has  had  a  larger  practice  or  has  passed 
through  life  more  truly  honored  and  loved  than  Dr.  Rives. 
Not  only  in  the  practice  of  medicine  was  he  eminent,  but  as 
a  medical  teacher  and  writer  he  was  widely  known.  He  was 
one  of  the  faculty  of  the  Cincinnati  Medical  College  and  after- 
wards of  the  Ohio  Medical  College.  He  retired  from  the 
active  duties  of  his  profession  about  the  year  1860,  but  he 
continued  to  reside  in  Cincinnati,  where  his  warm  heart,  his 
noble  mind,  and  his  perfect  example  of  the  old  time  gentle- 
man, now  so  rarely  seen,  will  long  be  remembered." 

Brown,   401-402. 

William  Cabell  Rives 

In  Walker's  Church,  Albemarle  County,  there  is  a  marble 
tablet  bearing  this  inscription:  "In  memory  of  one  of  the 
founders  of  this  church,  William  Cabell  Rives,  L.  L.  D.,  states- 
man, diplomatist,  historian,  born  May  4,  1793,  died  April  25, 
1868.  Uniting  a  clear  and  capacious  intellect,  a  courageous 
and  generous  temper,  with  sound  learning  and  commanding 
eloquence,  he  won  a  distinguished  place  among  the  foremost 


136  [1806 

men  whom  Virginia  has  consecrated  to  the  service  of  the 
country,  while  he  added  lustre  to  his  talents  by  the  purity 
and  dignity  of  his  public  career,  and  adorned  his  private  life 
with  all  the  virtues  which  can  grace  the  character  of  husband, 
father,  friend  and  Christian." 

Mr.  Rives,  minister  to  France,  1829-1832,  1849-1853 ;  Sena- 
tor in  Congress ;  President  of  the  Virginia  Historical  Society, 
etc.,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  around  1806, 
and  went  from  there  to  William  and  Mary,  since  he  looked 
to  politics.  He  was  the  son  of  Robert  Rives,  who  in  1806  was 
still  active  as  a  remarkable  organizer  of  large  commercial 
affairs.  William  C.  Rives  was  present  at  Hampden  Sidney 
for  an  important  occasion  long  after  his  boyhood  time  there — 
in  1845,,  at  the  dedication  of  the  Hampden  Memorials.  He 
made  then  an  address  on  John  Hampden,  and  the  significance 
of  that  great  man.  The  Richmond  Whig  said  of  Mr.  Rives: 
"Altogether  there  is  not  much  risk  in  asserting  that  he  was 
with  the  exception  of  his  great  teacher,  Mr.  Jefferson,  the 
most  accomplished  man  the  State  of  Virginia  has  produced." 
To  satisfy  oneself  as  to  the  power  of  Rives 's  mind  and  his  skill 
on  the  floor,  read  his  speech  on  Nullification,  1833. 
Brown,  pp.  407-411. 

James  Wilson  Womack 

James  W.  Womack  of  Prince  Edward  County,  died  in  1844. 
He  was  the  only  degree  man  of  his  year.  At  that  time  degrees 
were  conferred  mostly  in  April.  "April  27,  1806,  the  com- 
mittee appointed  to  examine  candidates  for  degrees  report  to 
this  board  that  they  have  examined  James  W.  Womack,  the 
only  candidate  at  this  time,  on  the  studies  of  the  senior  year, 
and  that  his  examination  was  satisfactory.  Whereupon  it  is 
ordered  by  the  board  that  the  said  Womack  be  admitted  to 
the  degree  of  bachelor  of  arts."  In  1812  the  board  ordered 
that  degrees  be  conferred  at  the  end  of  the  summer  session — 
that  is  to  say,  in  September.  But  the  regular  September 
commencement  does  not  seem  to  have  been  the  rule  until 
about  1821. 


(rfotfr    ^J^X. 


MOSES  HOGE 


1807 


Moses  Hoge 

John  Blair  Smith  managed  the  business  of  Hampden  Sidney 
to  very  good  result  during  critical  years  of  the  Revolution. 
What  his  work  was  from  1782  through  1789  stands  plain  on 
the  record.  He  was  making  a  college  in  Southside  Virginia. 
Then  he  stopped  his  college  work  in  Virginia,  and  Hampden 
Sidney  went  down.  But  even  with  John  Blair  Smith  in 
charge,  to  have  maintained  Hampden  Sidney  College  well 
from  1789  into  the  nineteenth  century  would  have  been  next 
to  impossible.  There  had  been  a  revolution,  and  how  serious 
the  thing  is  we  know  at  this  time  in  another  century.  People 
of  Southside  Virginia  were  leaving  their  new  established 
homes  for  still  newer  settlements.  People  left  in  the  country 
were  impatient  of  discipline.  Education  met  with  difficulties, 
the  Presbyterian  education  especially.  Archibald  Alexander 
and  John  Holt  Rice  took  hold  of  Hampden  Sidney  when  the 
college  and  what  the  college  stood  for  in  the  region  were  far 
gone.  Alexander  and  Rice  were  clerks,  were  glad  to  have 
the  opportunity  to  be  clerks  in  so  restless  a  time.  Because 
they  were  clerks  and  humanitarians,  willing  (young  as  they 
were)  to  go  about  their  humdrum  school  business,  because 
they  gave  the  place  the  benefit  of  their  clergy,  Hampden 
Sidney  was  revived.  Alexander,  Rice  and  Speece  started 
Hampden  Sidney  off  again,  caused  the  idea  of  the  place  to 
revive.  They  brought  the  place  into  some  sort  of  being  again, 
at  the  outset  of  a  strange  enough  century. 

William  Graham  at  Lexington  succumbed  to  the  Revolution. 
He  was  not  willing  to  keep  on  being  a  clerk.  As  the  eighteenth 
century  rounded  out,  Presbyterians  in  Virginia  were  not  hold- 
ing together.  What  machinery  of  organization  they  had  was 
not  working  well,  and  they  were  not  making  headway.  Middle 
and  Eastern  Virginia  were  not  taking  kindly  to  the  Presby- 
terian discipline.     Hampden  Sidney  had  produced  no  one  to 


138  [1807 

manage  its  affairs.  The  influence  of  Davies  in  Hanover  and 
that  region  had  almost  disappeared.  Recourse  had  to  be  had 
to  the  Scots  West  for  the  maintenance  of  the  Presbyterian 
system  in  the  older  Virginia.  And  so  were  brought  east  by 
reason  of  the  first  and  the  second  Hampden  Sidney  idea — 
Alexander,  Rice,  Speece,  John  Poage  Campbell,  Willson,  Shan- 
non, Ewing,  Paxton,  Moses  Hoge  and  his  sons.  But  of  all 
these,  Moses  Hoge,  in  many  ways  was  the  chief.  There  is  a 
power  of  character  that  is  inexplicable,  and  all  the  more  so 
if  due  in  large  measure  to  the  Bible. 

Moses  Hoge  was  born  in  Frederick  County,  at  that  time 
comprising  the  lower  valley  of  Virginia,  in  the  year  1752. 
His  grandfather,  William  Hoge,  was  an  emigrant  from  Scot- 
land to  New  Jersey ;  thence  he  and  his  son  James  Hoge,  father 
of  Moses  Hoge,  made  their  way  by  slow  stages  through  Dela- 
ware and  Pennsylvania  to  the  Shenandoah  Valley  of  Virginia. 
Moses  Hoge  was  emphatically  a  country  boy.  He  began  only 
in  his  twentieth  year  to  consider  books  as  important  in  the 
general  economy.  But  his  outlook  for  a  book  education  was 
discouraging.  For  one  thing,  the  Revolution  was  coming  on. 
The  first  year  of  the  war  broke  up  Mr.  Goodlet's  school  in 
Culpeper  County  where  Moses  Hoge  had  commenced  regular 
studies.  He  then  went  to  Augusta  County  for  work  under 
William  Graham.  For  several  years  his  mind  had  been  made 
up  to  be  a  minister.  He  had  been  greatly  impressed  by  a 
talk  given  at  Mr.  Goodlet  's  school  by  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith. 
At  first  an  Associate  Reformed  (or  Rous)  Presbyterian,  he 
changed  his  views  regarding  the  polity  and  procedure.  Moses 
Hoge  thought  matters  out  and  was  courageous.  He  was  for 
a  while  a  soldier  of  the  Revolution.  It  does  not  appear  why 
his  military  service  was  so  short,  but  plainly  his  reputation 
suffered  nothing  because  of  the  brevity  of  his  soldiering. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  war,  in  the  fall  of  1780,  Moses  Hoge 
was  ready  to  begin  his  work  as  a  minister.  It  had  been  his 
purpose  to  settle  in  Kentucky.  He  was  drawn  aside  to  the 
South  Branch  of  the  Potomac  (Hardy  County)  and  there 
remained  about  seven  years.    In  1787  he  removed  to  Mecklen- 


1807]  139 

burg,  or  Shepherdstown,  on  the  main  stream  of  the  Potomac, 
an  important  river  station  with  a  fine  back  country.  At 
Shepherdstown,  a  place  of  much  business,  go  and  come,  Mr. 
Hoge  spent  his  time  well  for  twenty  years.  He  was  a  preacher 
first  and  then  a  teacher.  His  character  was  such  that  wher- 
ever he  went  his  influence  was  rather  powerful.  The  scoffer 
had  to  admit  that  Moses  Hoge  could  withstand  scoffing  with 
great  equanimity.  Mr.  Hoge  stood  out  for  his  beliefs  and  put 
together  an  (answer  to  Tom  Paine  (The  Christian  Panoply, 
1799).  It  was  his  work  as  an  author  and  his  opinions 
(matured  and  put  to  practice  at  Shepherdstown)  regarding 
theological  instruction,  that  brought  Moses  Hoge  to  Hampden 
Sidney.  By  1807  the  Presbyterian  clergy  of  Virginia  had 
come  to  believe  that  if  Virginia  as  a  whole  was  to  be  at  all 
influentially  Presbyterian,  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to  ask 
Moses  Hoge  to  take  charge  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  His 
character  was  such  that  he  was  looked  to,  a  long  way  off,  in 
this  particular  business  of  forming  character.  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  had  been  chartered  in  no  sectarian  terms — a  new 
State  could  but  feel  its  way — but  it  was  soon  evident  that  if 
Presbyterian  clerks  would  not  take  hold  of  the  school  and 
maintain  it  in  a  clerkly  manner,  its  chance  of  survival  was 
small.  The  revolution  was  in  progress.  There  were  problems 
for  the  tackling  at  every  hand.  Alexander  and  Rice  had  come 
to  Hampden  Sidney  and  settled  down  to  their  programme  of 
self -improvement  without  neglecting  their  duty  to  the  place. 
Moses  Hoge  followed  them,  a  much  older  man,  of  more  weight, 
with  his  programme  for  making  Hampden  Sidney  known  as 
a  safe  place  to  send  boys  of  the  region  and  as  the  only  insti- 
tution in  the  State  formally  offering  to  train  students  in  the- 
ology. Why  attempt  to  comprehend  our  evolution?  It  is 
enough  to  say  that  Moses  Hoge,  by  the  force  of  his  character, 
kept  Hampden  Sidney  going  very  well  by  these  old  canons 
for  thirteen  years — embargo  years,  war  years,  the  beginning 
years  of  the  new  era  at  large  in  the  State  plainly  manifest 
after  1815.  People  of  the  region  were  glad  to  send  their  boys 
to  Dr.  Hoge,  no  matter  how  much  his  time  was  taken  up  with 


140  [1807 

theology.  Now  and  then  the  boys  behaved  very  badly,  and 
the  doctor  had  to  send  them  back  home.  But  his  name  was  a 
good  advertisement  and  the  college  was  run  about  to  capacity, 
fifty  to  sixty  students. 

Dr.  Hoge  was  of  the  eighteenth  century.  With  his  death 
in  1820  there  was  the  end  of  an  era  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

William  Shields  Reid 

b.  1778,  d.  1853.  Son  of  Adam  Reid  of  Chester  County, 
Pennsylvania,  whose  father  was  an  emigrant  from  the  North 
of  Ireland,  about  the  year  1740.  And  the  father  of  Adam 
Reid's  wife,  Martha  Shields,  was  an  emigrant  from  the  North 
of  Ireland.  Adam  Reid  was  a  farmer,  and  unable  to  do  much 
in  the  way  of  helping  his  son  to  a  higher  education.  William 
S.  Reid  schooled  himself  as  he  could,  and  paid  his  own  way 
through  Princeton  where  he  graduated  in  1802.  He  then  went 
to  Georgetown,  D.  C,  to  teach  in  an  academy,  remained  there 
two  years  and  during  that  time  studied  theology  under  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Balch,  the  organizer  of  Presbyterianism  in  George- 
town. From  Georgetown  he  went  to  Shepherdstown,  to  teach 
in  Dr.  Moses  Hoge 's  school  there  and  to  pursue  his  theological 
education  under  Dr.  Hoge.  Happening  to  be  at  Winchester, 
Mr.  Reid  met  President  Alexander  of  Hampden  Sidney,  who 
was  looking  for  a  Tutor  to  take  the  place  of  John  Holt  Rice. 
And  so  William  S.  Reid  came  to  Hampden  Sidney.  He  was 
in  charge  of  the  college  for  a  year  after  President  Alexander 's 
resignation.  Marrying  a  daughter  of  Col.  Samuel  W.  Venable 
of  Prince  Edward  County,  Mr.  Reid  spent  the  rest  of  his  life 
in  Virginia.  He  settled  at  Lynchburg  in  1808,  established  a 
school  for  boys  and  began  the  building  up  of  a  Presbyterian 
congregation.  After  a  few  years  he  undertook  a  school  for 
girls,  which  he  maintained  for  a  quarter  century  at  least, 
making  a  pronounced  and  altogether  worthy  success.  In  1834 
Princeton  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  D.  D.  William 
S.  Reid  was  an  admirable  man  for  courtesy  and  kindness  of 
heart;  and  his  influence  as  a  teacher  of  young  women  was 
remarkable. 

Sprague  IV,  388-392. 


1807]  141 

Thomas  Allen 

Thomas  Allen,  born  perhaps  in  Prince  Edward  County, 
after  studying  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  about  the  year 
1807,  graduated  in  medicine  at  the  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania in  1812,  and  settled  for  the  practice  on  Upper  Spring 
Creek  in  Prince  Edward  County.  'Dr.  Allen  was  a  medical 
practitioner  of  some  distinction,  a  man  of  integrity  and  up- 
rightness, indomitable  in  the  vicissitudes  of  fortune — some- 
what stern  and  inflexible  in  his  family  relations.  In  1833  Dr. 
Allen  removed  to  Kay  County,  Missouri,  with  his  family — 
seven  children  whose  mother  had  recently  died.  Dr.  Allen 
was  a  devout  man,  according  to  the  rigid  tenets  of  Scotch 
Presbyterianism,  a  man  who  would  be  felt  as  a  power,  an 
influence  in  any  position  or  society.'  Henry  Watkins  Allen, 
brigadier  general  C.  S.  A.,  and  governor  of  Louisana,  was 
the  fourth  son  of  Dr.  Thomas  Allen.  Henry  W.  Allen  was 
born  in  Prince  Edward  County  in  1820. 

Sarah  A.  Dorsey,  Becollections  of  Henry  Watkins  Allen.     New 
York,   1866,  pp.  1-23. 


We  will  guess  that  William  Allen,  1806,  was  the  brother  of  Thomas 
Allen.  Dr.  Allen  had  a  son  named  William.  The  descendants  of  Dr. 
Allen's  seven  children  must  be  numerous  now  in  Missouri  and  California. 

George  Booker 

Assigned  by  Union  Society  Catalogue  to  Prince  Edward 
County,  George  Booker  (a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about 
1807)  was  perhaps  a  son  of  George  Booker  of  Prince  Edward. 
Howe,  in  his  Historical  Collections  of  Virginia,  gives  the 
curious  item  below: 

"There  died  in  Prince  Edward  County  in  1819  a  slave 
named  Wonder  Booker,  belonging  to  George  Booker,  Esq., 
who  had  reached  his  126th  year.  He  received  his  name  from 
the  circumstance  that  his  mother  was  in  her  58th  year  at  the 
time  of  his  birth.  He  was  of  great  strength  of  body  and  his 
mental  powers,  which  were  far  superior  to  those  of  people  of 


142  [1807 

color  in  general,  he  retained  in  a  surprising  degree.  He  was 
a  constant  laborer  in  his  master's  garden  until  within  eight 
or  ten  years  of  his  death."  Wonder  Booker  died  the  year 
the  University  of  Virginia  was  by  law  established;  he  was 
exactly  the  age  of  the  college  of  William  and  Mary ;  his  mother 
and  Harvard  College  were  contemporaries. 

Samuel  Branch 

The  Philanthropic  Society  in  1850,  desiring  to  put  up  a 
Hall  for  its  meetings,  struck  off  a  list  of  those  members,  active 
and  honorary,  whose  names  could  be  hurriedly  recovered  at 
that  time.  The  idea  was  in  part  to  have  in  convenient  form 
a  catalogue  that  might  be  used  for  sending  out  letters  to  get 
subscriptions.  This  was  a  laudable  purpose,  and  the  result 
(if  not  directly  practical  in  the  building  of  a  Hall)  has  been 
of  much  use  historically — and  it  should  be  added,  of  some 
confusion.  The  similar  attempt  of  the  Union  Society  in  1856 
is  to  be  characterized  in  like  manner.  The  second  name  on 
the  Philanthropic  Society  list  of  1850  is  that  of  'Samuel 
Branch,  Buckingham  County.'  The  first  few  pages  of  the 
earliest  minute  book  of  the  Philanthropic  Society  have  been 
lost.  We  will  accept  the  statement  that  Samuel  Branch  of 
Buckingham  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  about 
1806,  and  the  further  statement  (found  in  the  general  cata- 
logue of  1908)  that  Mr.  Branch  was  commonwealth's  attorney 
of  Buckingham.  At  any  rate,  Samuel  Branch  of  Buckingham 
was  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  nearly  thirty  years, 
and  at  his  death  in  1847  the  board  drew  up  resolutions  of 
respect  to  his  memory. 

The  name  Branch  has  been  associated  with  Southside  Vir- 
ginia from  an  early  time.  William  Branch,  Jr.,  of  Prince 
Edward  County,  who  died  in  1825,  published  in  1819  (at  the 
Franklin  Press,  Richmond)  a  long  poem  called  "Life  .  .  . 
dedicated  to  the  social  and  political  welfare  of  the  people  of 
the  United  States."  Mr.  Branch  said  in  his  preface  that  he 
had  not  had  the  advantages  of  an  academical  education.    His 


1807]  143 

poem  is  worth  a  reading.  It  is  divided  into  three  books — 
Infancy,  Youth  and  Manhood.  In  Book  II,  after  describing 
the  customary  education,  William  Branch  wrote: 

"  Reverse   the  picture  and  behold   the  man, 
Bear'd  up  a  sage  on  Pestalozzi's  plan. 
Not  shades  but  things  he  learns  in  early  youth. 

In  candour  warn'd  to  shun  that  mental  state, 
Which  habitude   and  bias  oft  create, 
He  strives  to  store  his  mind  and  mend  his  heart, 
That  with  sound  facts  and  this  by  native  art. ' ' 

Good  enough,  to  be  sure. 

Robert  Guerrant  Branch  (born  in  Buckingham  County, 
1813,  died  1855),  after  graduating  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege in  1833,  spent  a  year  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  and 
then  returned  to  Hampden  Sidney  where  he  was  professor  of 
Ancient  Languages  until  1846.  He  then  took  charge  of  the 
celebrated  school  for  girls  which  had  been  established  at 
Prince  Edward  Court  House  by  Mr.  Root  of  New  York. 

The  general  catalogue  lists  "William  D.  Branch,  lawyer, 
mayor  of  Lynchburg,"  as  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  about 
1820,  but  it  does  not  appear  where  the  information  comes 
from.  Information  since  received  establishes  the  fact  that 
William  D.  Branch,  who  was  mayor  of  Lynchburg,  was  a 
brother  of  Robert  G.  Branch.  And  further,  it  is  gratifying 
to  know  that  Samuel  Branch  (1807),  a  native  of  Chesterfield, 
but  long  resident  in  the  Buckingham  region,  was  the  father 
of  William  D.  and  Robert  G.  Branch. 

Benjamin  W.  S.  Cabell 

b.  1793,  d.  1862.  Son  of  Joseph  Cabell,  Jr.,  of  Buckingham 
County,  later  of  Kentucky.  Educated  at  Hampden  Sidney, 
during  the  vice-presidency  of  William  S.  Reid,  about  1807 ; 
went  to  Kentucky  with  his  father  in  1811,  but  returned  to 
Virginia.  He  was  trained  for  the  law,  but  owing  to  diffidence, 
never  practiced.  Served  in  the  war  of  1812,  first  on  the  staff 
of  Brigadier  General  Joel  Leftwich,  and  afterwards  on  the 


144  [1807 

staff  of  Major  General  John  Pegram.  After  the  war  he  held 
in  succession  the  commission  of  major,  colonel,  brigadier 
general  and  major  general  of  militia;  the  two  last  being  by 
election  of  the  General  Assembly.  Was  married  in  1816  (by 
Eev.  Moses  Hoge,  then  president  of  Hampden  Sidney  College) 
to  a  daughter  of  Major  John  Doswell  of  Nottoway  County. 
He  removed  to  Danville,  and  represented  Pittsylvania  County 
in  the  legislature  for  a  good  many  terms  beginning  in  1823. 
Was  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1829.  From  the  first  he 
was  an  unflagging  supporter  of  the  University,  a  liberal 
system  of  public  education;  and  of  the  James  River  Canal. 
In  1858  he  wrote,  "I  was  able  to  contribute  somewhat  to  the 
great  plans  to  which  Joseph  C.  Cabell  devoted  his  life. ' ' 
For  a  time  General  Cabell  edited  a  paper  at  Danville.  Six  of 
his  sons  were  in  the  Confederate  army.  He  was  an  active 
member  of  the  Methodist  church,  and  died  at  "  Bridge  water, ' ' 
his  residence  in  Pittsylvania  County. 

Brown,   469. 

Thomas  W.  Lumpkin 

Born  in  Bedford  County,  Thomas  Lumpkin  may  have  come 
to  Hampden  Sidney  College  as  Tutor  as  early  as  1805.  In 
1807  the  Bachelor's  degree  was  awarded  to  Henry  N.  Wat- 
kins,  and  Thomas  W.  Lumpkin  'who  had  been  for  some  years 
a  Tutor  in  college.'  Drury  Lacy  acted  as  president  pro- 
tempore  for  the  purpose  of  signing  the  degrees  of  the  young 
gentlemen.  Mr.  Lumpkin  had  very  probably  been  prepared 
for  college  work  at  New  London  Academy,  Bedford  County. 
He  studied  theology  under  Moses  Hoge,  no  doubt  continuing 
in  his  office  as  Tutor  at  the  college  for  a  year  after  1807.  He 
then  spent  some  time  as  a  missionary  in  Albemarle  County; 
was  settled  as  pastor  of  the  church  at  Charlottesville,  October, 
1809 ;  and  died  of  a  bilious  fever  about  six  months  thereafter. 
'He  was  a  man  of  superior  abilities,  great  courage,  and  un- 
feigned piety.' 

Board  Minutes. 
Sprague,  IV,  330. 


1807]  145 

"Mr.  Lumpkin  seems  to  have  been  impulsive,  and  though 
small,  yet  capable  of  communicating  an  impulse  to  others,  for 
on  coming  suddenly  into  the  campus  one  day,  while  he  was 
tutor  in  college,  and  there  finding  a  big  fellow  cursing  his 
fellow  tutor  in  what  has  so  frequently  been  considered  a  brave 
and  manly  style,  he  walked  up  to  the  young  orator  and 
interrupted  his  eloquence  by  a  well-directed  blow  between 
the  eyes,  then  seized  this  fallen  greatness  by  the  heels  and 
dragged  him  from  the  campus  to  the  quiet  and  retirement  of 
the  neighboring  thicket  of  chinquepins,  and  there  left  him  to 
meditation. ' ' 

Hampden  Sidney  Magazine,  May  1859,  p.   195. 
il  Memorabilia ' '   by   Professor   Charles  Martin. 

Henry  N.  Watkins 

b.  1787,  d.  1850.  Son  of  Capt.  Thomas  Watkins  of  the 
Revolution.  Henry  N.  Watkins  was  awarded  a  first  honor  on 
his  graduation  in  1807.  He  was  out  with  the  cavalry  in  the 
war  of  1812.  Mr.  Watkins  was  a  lawyer  and  an  elder  in  the 
Presbyterian  church.  His  home  called  "Oldham,"  was  in 
Prince  Edward  County,  near  the  present  village  of  Meherrin. 

Dr.   Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Henry  N.  Watkins  was  for  some  years  a  Trustee  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  In  1835  he  was  of  the  Committee  of  the 
Trustees  to  make  a  report  regarding  the  college  to  the  Super- 
intendent of  the  Literary  Fund.  The  report  was  brief  and 
pointed — ' '  This  college, ' '  the  Committee  said,  ' '  has  contended 
with  difficulties  which  no  other  institution  of  the  kind  in  the 
State  has  had  to  encounter,  yet  it  has  sustained  itself  respect- 
ably among  them  all.  The  average  number  of  students  at  this 
college,  from  its  foundation,  has  been  as  we  have  learned  from 
our  late  president,  about  sixty.  The  location  of  this  college 
is  as  healthy  as  any  situation  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and 
tidewater.     Which  is  respectfully  submitted." 


146  [1807 

Miles  Selden  Watkins 

Miles  S.  Watkins,  son  of  Thomas  Watkins,  clerk  of  Chester- 
field County,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about  1807. 
He  was  at  William  and  Mary  in  1810,  and  graduated  in  medi- 
cine at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  in  1816.  Dr.  Miles 
Watkins  settled  in  Alabama,  in  the  Huntsville  region. 

At  Hampden  Sidney  with  him  was  his  brother,  Benjamin 
Watkins,  who  died  in  1825,  a  bachelor.  Benjamin  Watkins 
Leigh  of  Chesterfield  (United  States  Senate,  etc.)  was  a  near 
relation.  In  1825  Hampden  Sidney  College  began  conferring 
the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws,  and  Mr.  Leigh  was  the  first 
to  receive  the  degree  from  Hampden  Sidney. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 
Programme  of  1825  Commencement. 


X808 


Andrew  A.  Shannon 

Archibald  Alexander,  having  resigned  his  place  as  president 
of  the  college,  the  Board  of  Trustees  took  action  in  November, 
1806,  and  appointed  William  S.  Reid  to  superintend  and  take 
charge  of  the  college  for  a  year,  and  Andrew  Shannon,  Thomas 
Lumpkin,  and  James  Willson  were  appointed  assistant  teach- 
ers. June,  1808,  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  was  con- 
ferred on  Andrew  Shannon  speciali  gratia  et  causa  honoris. 
Mr.  Shannon  had  been  serving  as  a  Tutor  in  the  college,  at 
the  same  time  carrying  on  his  theological  studies.  From  1810 
to  1818  he  was  pastor  of  Cedar  Creek  and  Opecquon  churches 
in  Frederick  County.  In  1820  he  went  to  Kentucky,  and  was 
living  in  1836,  a  member  of  Louisville  Presbytery. 

James  Campbell  Willson 

September  29,  1808,  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College  causa  honoris  made  James  C.  Willson  a  Bach- 
elor of  Arts,  'in  consideration  of  his  literary  qualifications.' 
He  had,  by  the  record,  for  some  time  been  'a  teacher  in  the 
seminary. '  It  is  possible  that  the  meaning  of  this  is  that  Mr. 
Willson 's  duties  had  been  somewhat  in  the  theological  depart- 
ment, where  for  awhile  after  1808  he  was  employed  by  Mr. 
Hoge.  But  there  is  hardly  any  doubt  that  Mr.  Willson  was, 
around  1808,  a  Tutor  in  the  college  proper.  He  was  born  in 
Rockbridge  County ;  was  a  near  relation  of  John  W.  Campbell 
(the  publisher  and  bookseller)  of  Petersburg;  was  a  student 
at  Washington  Academy,  Lexington,  about  1803;  and  for 
more  than  twenty  years  was  pastor  of  Tinkling  Spring  church, 
Augusta  County. 

Foote  II,  39. 

Life  of  Samuel  B.  McPheeters,  p.  10. 


148  [1808 

Richard  Booker 

Entered  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1807.  Planter  of 
ample  means.  Represented  his  county,  Amelia,  in  the  legis- 
lature for  ten  or  a  dozen  years.  Retired  from  public  life  when 
instructed  to  vote  for  Benjamin  Watkins  Leigh  for  U.  S. 
Senate.  He  also  ran  against  his  uncle,  "William  B.  Giles.  No 
man  had  greater  influence  with  the  people  of  his  county.  He 
became  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  church  and  died  in  the 
faith  in  1845. 

Dr.   Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  Booker 

Born  in  Amelia  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1807.  Planter.  Nephew  of  Governor  Giles.  Was  one  of 
six  brothers  who  volunteered  in  war  of  1812.  Suffered  greatly 
in  Canada.     A  man  of  many  noble  and  generous  qualities. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

John  Blair  Hoge 

b.  1790,  d.  1826.  Son  of  President  Moses  Hoge,  who  in 
1790  was  living  in  Jefferson  County.  "He  obtained  the  rudi- 
ments of  his  education  in  his  father's  house  and  chiefly  by 
instruction  from  young  men  who  were  prosecuting  theological 
studies  under  his  father's  direction.  He  was  for  two  years  a 
pupil  of  his  brother  James  (the  Rev.  Dr.  Hoge  of  Columbus, 
Ohio),  in  a  classical  school  which  he  taught  at  Augusta  church. 
After  this  he  assisted  his  father  for  some  time  in  a  school 
which  he  had  established  at  Shepherdstown,  Jefferson  County. 
He  then  entered  Hampden  Sidney  College  at  an  advanced 
standing,  and  graduated  in  1808.  He  was  for  ia  year  or  two 
Tutor  in  the  college,  of  which  his  father  had  become  president 
in  1807.  Toward  1810  he  commenced  the  study  of  the  law 
under  the  instruction  of  Henry  E.  Watkins  of  Prince  Edward 
County,  and  mastered  the  principles  of  the  law  with  such 


1808]  149 

facility  and  evinced  in  so  high  a  degree  the  faculty  of  gener- 
alization, that  there  was  every  prospect  of  his  early  becoming 
eminent  in  the  profession.  On  mature  reflection,  however, 
he  determined  to  abandon  both  the  study  of  the  law  and  the 
prospect  of  its  practice,  and  prepare  himself  for  the  gospel 
ministry."  He  studied  theology  under  his  father.  His  first 
work  as  a  minister  was  in  Berkeley  County,  where  he  was  at 
once  eminently  successful.  He  spent  two  years  in  Europe, 
1814-1816,  mainly  in  the  south  of  France,  for  the  benefit  of 
his  health.  Returning  to  Berkeley  County,  in  1822  he  became 
pastor  of  the  Shockoe  Hill  Church  at  Richmond.  He  died  at 
the  house  of  a  friend  near  Martinsburg.  In  1819  he  had 
married  Miss  Ann  Hunter  of  Martinsburg  (daughter  of  David 
Hunter),  whose  family  was  influential  in  that  region.  John 
Blair  Hoge  was  something  of  'a  meteor.  "His  talents,  taste, 
and  acquirements  were  acknowledged  by  all  who  knew  him 
intimately  to  be  of  the  first  order. ' '  His  friends  compared  him 
to  Chalmers.  His  son,  John  Blair  Hoge,  was  brought  up  in 
Berkeley  County,  was  a  lawyer  of  distinction  and  a  member 
of  Congress. 

Sprague  IV,  448-453. 

Colin  Mclver 

A  member  of  the  Union  Society  in  1808,  Colin  Mclver  (born 
in  North  Carolina,  in  the  Fayetteville  region),  followed  at 
Hampden  Sidney,  it  is  likely,  both  academic  and  theological 
studies.  In  1811  he  was  second  assistant  to  William  L.  Turner 
in  the  management  of  the  Fayetteville  Academy.  In  1822 
Joseph  Gales  of  Raleigh  announced  the  immediate  publication 
jf  a  surprisingly  modern  work  by  the  Rev.  Colin  Mclver — 
"An  accurate  calendar  with  the  usual  astronomical  calcula- 
tions, to  contain  the  names  of  the  several  officers  who  conduct 
the  State  government;  the  names  of  'all  the  magistrates  and 
subordinate  officers  of  the  several  counties  of  the  State;  the 
names  of  the  several  incorporated  companies  and  voluntary 
associations  for  useful,  beneficient  and  pious  purposes  which 


150  [1808 

exist  within  the  State,  with  lists  of  the  principal  officers;  a 
list  of  postoffices  and  postmasters  of  the  State;  and  a  great 
variety  of  other  matter  both  of  a  civil  and  ecclesiastical  nature 
relating  to  North  Carolina  and  to  the  United  States.  The 
work,  to  be  called  'The  North  Carolina  Eegister  and  United 
States  Calendar,'  to  be  completed  by  the  time  fixed  for  the 
meeting  of  the  legislature."  Mr.  Mclver  was  living  in  the 
Fayetteville  region  in  1845. 

North  Carolina  Schools  and  Academies,  p.  67;  p.  790. 
Presbyterian   Historical    Society    (Phila.)    Catalogue. 

William  Shelton 

Born  1790,  in  Louisa  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney 
College  in  1807,  left  in  1808.  Served  in  war  of  1812.  Farmer. 
Presbyterian  elder.     Died  in  1847. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Nathaniel  E.  Venable 

b.  1791,  d.  1847.  Son  of  Col.  Samuel  W.  Venable  of  Prince 
Edward  County.  Soon  after  leaving  college  (where  he  had 
been  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Philanthropic  Society — see 
Minutes,  September  27,  1847),  Mr.  Venable  saw  some  service 
in  the  war  of  1812,  as  a  minor  officer.  He  was  a  man  of  large 
business,  at  first  in  partnership  with  his  father  under  the  firm 
name  of  Venable  and  Venable.  An  analysis  of  the  business 
of  this  firm,  'along  with  that  of  its  predecessor  and  successor, 
would  explain  much  of  the  old  conditions  of  business  through- 
out Southside  Virginia.  The  firm  bought  tobacco  and  shipped 
it  out  by  roller  and  wagon  and  flat  boat.  They  brought  in 
dry  goods  and  supplies,  operated  flour  mills,  saw  mills  and 
tanneries,  speculated  in  land,  and  promoted  the  building  of 
towns.  The  financial  stress  of  1837-1840  was  disastrous  to 
Mr.  Venable.  If  his  business  had  been  simpler  he  might  not 
have  become  so  involved.  His  home  was  at ' '  Longwood, ' '  near 
Farmville.     He  built  the  house  there  about  1840.    The  land 


1808]  151 

was  part  of  the  estate  of  his  uncle,  Abraham  B.  Venable,  who 
had  bought  from  Judge  Peter  Johnston.  Nathaniel  E.  Venable 
was  a  Presbyterian,  and  for  many  years  a  Trustee  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  He  was  the  father  of  Colonel  Charles 
Scott  Venable  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

Daniel  Allen  Wilson 

Richard  Wilson  of  James  City  County  married  Priscilla 
Allen,  daughter  of  Daniel  Allen  of  Cumberland  County.  Their 
son,  Daniel  A.  Wilson,  was  born  in  Cumberland  in  1790. 
After  a  year  or  two  at  Hampden  Sidney,  he  studied  law  under 
Judge  William  Daniel  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1810„ 
These  statements  are  drawn  from  an  old  book  at  Chapel  Hill, 
North  Carolina,  which  has  been  preserved  with  the  title  page 
gone.  The  book  was  written  toward  1850,  when  Daniel  A. 
Wilson,  as  lawyer,  politician  and  judge  had  established  his 
reputation.  Judge  Wilson  was  in  the  best  sense  an  ornament 
of  the  bench  as  a  member  of  the  old  General  Court,  and  we 
regret  exceedingly  that  there  is  not  at  hand  a  full  sketch  of 
his  career.  To  be  assured  that  he  was  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  is  worth  a  great  deal. 


1809 


Green  H.  Batte 

Green  H.  Batte  of  Prince  George  County,  seems  to  have 
been  first  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  then  a  student 
at  Washington  Academy,  Lexington.  His  brother  (perhaps), 
Thomas  C.  Batte,  was  apparently  first  at  Washington  Acad- 
emy and  then  at  Hampden  Sidney.  Dr.  Green  H.  Batte  was 
a  physician,  well-known  in  Prince  George  and  that  region. 
He  died  in  1825. 

Alumni    Catalogue,    Washington    and    Lee    University. 

John  Davidson  Ewing 

Born  in  Rockingham  County;  a  student  at  Washington 
Academy  (Washington  and  Lee)  1806-1807;  student  and 
Tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1807-1809;  A.  B.,  1809. 
Teacher  of  a  classical  school  in  Rockbridge  County  and  pastor 
of  Lebanon,  Windy  Cove  and  Falling  Spring  churches  in  that 
county.  Trustee  of  Washington  College  (Washington  and 
Lee),  1830-1856.     Died  in  1877,  aged  89. 

Washington  and  Lee  Alumni  Catalogue. 

James  Jones 

A  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1809  (see  Philanthropic 
Society  Minutes),  James  Jones  died  in  1838.  He  was  a 
physician  settled  in  Buckingham  County  and  is  mentioned 
in  the  catalogue  of  the  medical  department  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  for  1849  as  having  trained  <a  student  for  further 
medical  studies  in  the  Medical  Department  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College.  Dr.  James  Jones  was  connected  by  marriage 
with  the  Moseley  family  of  Buckingham. 


1809]  153 

Reuben  D.  Palmer 

Born  in  Halifax  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  in 
1808.     M.  D.     Surgeon  in  war  of  1812. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

John  Bedford  Royall 

b.  1788,  d.  1844.  John  B.  Royall  was  living  in  Halifax 
County  in  1840.  That  year  he  removed  with  his  family  to 
Missouri,  settling  at  Columbia,  where  he  died  in  1844.  He 
was  the  father  of  Colonel  William  Bedford  Royall  (1825-1895) 
of  the  United  States  army.  Colonel  Royall,  U.  S.  A.,  was  the 
nephew  of  General  Sterling  Price,  C.  S.  A. 

Price   Genealogy,  p.  45. 

Frederick  C.  Speece 

Frederick  Speece  (no  doubt  a  native  of  Campbell  County) 
had  some  connection  with  Hampden  Sidney  College,  extend- 
ing over  a  considerable  space  of  time.  July,  1809,  the  Union 
Society  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Speece,  declining  member- 
ship, since  there  was  '  prospect  of  his  residing  in  the  neigh- 
borhood but  a  short  time.'  But  in  August  he  had  been  per- 
suaded to  come  into  the  Society.  Mr.  Speece  was  a  member 
of  the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College,  and  read  the  Poem  at  the  anniversary  meeting 
in  1827,  when  J.  B.  Harrison  made  his  remarkable  address. 
In  1832  Frederick  Speece  published  at  Philadelphia  a  volume 
of  poems  (pp.  156,  16mo.).  The  preface  is  dated,  Lynchburg, 
October,  1829.  The  author  may  have  been  in  charge  of  the 
New  London  Academy ;  one  of  his  poems,  Sketches,  was  writ- 
ten there  in  1823 — an  apostrophe  to  Campbell  County  and  a 
logical  lament: 


154  [1809 

"Land  of  my  birth!   to  thee  belong 
The  bard,  the  subject,  and  the  song: — 
Fair  Campbell,  tho'  thy  verdant  vales 
Eesound  no  shepherd's  fabled  tales, 
For  thee  no  minstrel's  harp  be  strung, 
And  all  thy  beauties  bloom  unsung, 
Yet  thine  are  charms  that  might  inspire 
The  pen,  the  pencil,   and  the  lyre. 

Mute  is  the  chord  whose  tones  should  flow 
In  sprightly  mirth  or  melting  wo, 
Silent  the  voice  whose  polish 'd  lays 
Should  vindicate  the  poet's  bays. 
Yet  are  thy  sons  and  daughters  graced 
With  genius,  learning,  wit,  and  taste: 
Plenty  and  health  and  hope  abound 
And  peace  and  gladness  laugh  around." 

A.  B.  Duncombe 

This  letter  is  too  quotable  not  to  be  quoted.  The  writer  may- 
have  been  the  father  of  the  alumnus  of  1809.  He  was  bothered 
with  military  claims  at  Richmond,  and  the  paymaster  general's 
office  at  Philadelphia  was  slow.  At  any  rate,  A.  Duncombe 
wrote  from  Richmond,  March  27,  1791,  to  Paymaster  Howell : 
' '  I  suppose  if  I  were  to  write  you  a  letter  in  which  you  would 
be  told  that  fate,  fortune,  or  something  or  somebody  else  has 
left  or  given  or  put  in  the  power  of  you  to  command  a  good 
chew  of  tobacco,  that  you  would  be  attentive  to  give  me  thanks 
for  the  information." 

Boogher,   Gleanings   of  Virginia  History,  p.   234. 


18X0 


Edward  Chambers 

Born  in  Lunenburg  County.  Lawyer  and  teacher  of  law 
at  Boydton,  Mecklenburg  County.  Judge.  Man  of  great 
natural  talent.    Died  since  the  civil  war. 

Dr.   Hooper 's   Manuscript. 

Judge  Chambers  seems  to  have  been  a  student  at  the 
University  of  North  Carolina  in  1813.  His  law  school  was  in 
connection  with  Randolph  Macon  College  at  Boydton.  He 
died  in  1872.  Judge  Chambers  was  a  Trustee  of  Randolph 
Macon  College.  Soon  after  the  war  there  was  a  movement 
to  take  Randolph  Macon  College  away  from  Boydton.  Natur- 
ally there  was  much  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Boydton 
neighborhood.  Judge  Chambers  was  the  leader  of  that  oppo- 
sition. There  was  a  stand  up  fight,  in  the  law  courts  and  in 
other  ways.  So  much  so,  that  General  Stoneman,  in  command 
of  the  district,  was  involved.  He  allowed  the  meeting  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  in  1868,  when  it  was  finally  decided  to 
remove  the  college.  So  far  as  landscape  goes,  that  was  a 
bad  reconstruction  move. 

William  Jones  Dupuy 

Born  in  Nottoway  County,  1792.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, 1809.  M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsylvania.  Physician  in 
Nottoway  until  1836.  Moved  to  Petersburg.  Presbyterian 
elder.  Died  in  December,  1853,  in  Nottoway  County,  while 
on  a  visit.  [Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript.]  Dr.  Dupuy,  a  brother 
of  Col.  Asa  Dupuy  of  Prince  Edward  County,  married  a 
sister  of  Edmund  Ruffin,  editor  of  the  "Farmers'  Register/' 
published  at  Petersburg  for  some  ten  years  before  1842. 


156  [1810 

Thomas  James  Garden 

Born  1795,  in  Charlotte  County.  Was  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  a  short  time  about  1810.  Studied  medicine  «at  Lexing- 
ton, Kentucky,  but  had  no  medical  degree  until  rather  late  in 
his  practice ;  degree  being  conferred  both  by  Dr.  Mettauer  's 
school  and  by  the  medical  college  at  Richmond.  Presbyterian. 
Gave  the  land  for  a  Presbyterian  Church  at  Wylliesburg, 
Charlotte  County.     Died  at  Wylliesburg  in  September,  1856. 

Dr.  Mellwaine  's  manuscript. 


Dr.  Garden  was  a  grandson  of  James  Garden,  the 
first  minister  of  St.  Patrick's  Parish,  Prince  Edward 
County.    James   Garden  was   a   Scotchman. 

Samuel  Davies  Hoge 

b.  1793,  d.  1826.  The  fourth  son  of  Dr.  Moses  Hoge,  by 
his  first  wife,  who  was  Elizabeth  Poage.  He  was  first  taught 
the  Latin  language  by  his  father  and  students  of  theology 
who  lived  in  his  father's  house  at  Shepherdstown.  Then  for 
some  time  he  was  placed  at  the  classical  school  kept  by  his 
brother  James  at  Augusta  Church.  He  accompanied  his 
father  to  Hampden  Sidney  in  1807,  and  graduated  at  the 
college  in  1810.  His  immediate  preparation  for  college  had 
been  given  him  at  his  father's  Shepherdstown  school,  and  his 
father  trained  him  in  theology.  During  the  years  of  his 
theological  training,  he  served  as  Tutor  in  the  college,  and 
after  he  had  been  licensed  to  preach  in  1813  he  continued  in 
his  office  at  the  college  for  awhile.  For  three  years,  1814  to 
1817,  he  was  pastor  of  churches  in  Culpeper  and  Madison 
counties ;  and  then,  in  the  fall  of  1817,  returned  to  Hampden 
Sidney,  where  until  the  summer  of  1820  he  acted  again  as 
Tutor,  and  for  a  time  as  Vice-President.  The  spring  of  1821 
he  went  out  to  Ohio,  where  his  brother  Dr.  James  Hoge  had 
been  long  established  as  a  minister.  Pastor  of  churches  in 
Highland  County,  Ohio,  for  two  years,  Professor  Hoge  found 


1810]  157 

that  his  health  would  not  admit  of  regular  preaching.  In 
1823  he  became  Professor  of  mathematics  and  natural  philo- 
sophy at  Ohio  University,  Athens.  The  summer  of  1825  he 
made  a  trip  to  Yale  and  through  the  east,  in  the  interests  of 
his  college,  of  which  he  was  virtually  President.  The  next 
summer  he  died  rather  suddenly.  Samuel  D.  Hoge  was  a 
man  of  books,  a  student  of  literature  and  the  sciences.  He 
read  Latin  and  Greek  with  ease.  His  end  came  upon  him  in 
the  Philosophical  room  at  Athens.  The  late  Rev.  Dr.  Moses 
D.  Hoge  of  Richmond  was  his  son. 

Sprague  IV,  483-486. 
Life  of  Moses  D.  Hoge. 

James  Watkins  Hunt 

Son  of  William  Pitt  Hunt,  (Princeton  1786  and  Hon.  A.  B., 
Hampden  Sidney,  1786),  who  was  the  son  of  the  Rev.  James 
Hunt  (Princeton,  1759),  who  was  the  son  of  James  Hunt  of 
Hanover  County.  James  Hunt  of  Hanover  County  was  one 
of  those  vexed  dissenters  about  the  year  1740.  The  Rev. 
James  Hunt  for  many  years  kept  an  excellent  classical  school 
in  Montgomery  County,  Maryland,  at  which  William  Wirt 
was  a  pupil.  William  Pitt  Hunt  was  at  first  a  lawyer  in 
Maryland  (William  Wirt  studied  law  in  his  office),  and  then 
a  lawyer  in  Virginia.  He  married  a  daughter  of  Col.  Joel 
Watkins  of  Charlotte  County,  and  died  about  the  year  1797. 
Dr.  Moses  Hoge  married  his  widow.  James  W.  Hunt,  after 
graduating  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1810,  graduated  in 
medicine  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  in  1813,  and  died 
in  1817. 

Life  and  Thoughts  of  the  Rev.   Thomas  P.   Hunt:     an  Auto- 
biography.    Wilkes-Barre,  Pa.,   1901,  pp.   1-18. 

Paulus  Aemilius  Irving 

Charles  Irving,  factor  for  Henderson,  McCaul  &  Company, 
merchants  in  Glasgow,  settled  before  1770  in  Albemarle 
County.     Later  his  home   was  in   Buckingham   County,   on 


158  [1810 

James  River,  below  Howardsville.  The  place  was  called 
"Selma,"  a  name  from  the  Ossianic  legend.  Charles  Irving 
was  the  son  of  Robert  Irving,  advocate,  of  Edinburgh,  brother 
to  James  Irving,  ancestor  of  Washington  Irving.  [Brown, 
p.  91.]  Paulus  Aemilius  Irving,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  in  1810,  after  serving  as  ensign  in  a  Lynchburg 
company  of  rifles,  war  of  1812  [Powhatan  Ellis,  lieutenant], 
studied  medicine  in  Philadelphia,  gave  promise  of  much 
ability,  and  died  young.  A  brother  of  Dr.  Paulus  Aemilius 
Irving,  Charles  Irving  of  Buckingham  County,  sent  several 
sons  to  Hampden  Sidney  College,  viz.,  Charles  [Robert]  Ir- 
ving (catalogue  1824),  a  physician,  settled  in  Amelia  County, 
where  he  died  in  1835 ;  Henry  Page  Irving  and  Joseph  Kin- 
caid  Irving  (about  1826),  lawyers,  who  went  to  California; 
and  Carter  Harrison  Irving  (1837,)  a  physician  of  Bucking- 
ham County  who  died  in  1895.  Francis  Deane  Irving  (Hamp- 
den Sidney,  1839),  Judge,  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege, etc.,  was  a  son  of  Robert  Irving,  another  brother  of  Dr. 
Paulus  Aemilius  Irving,  1810.  It  is  said  that  Charles  Irving, 
the  emigrant,  and  Major  Paulus  Aemilius  Irving  of  the 
British  army,  no  doubt  relations,  became  good  friends  while 
Major  Irving  was  at  prison  camp  in  Albemarle,  with  the 
'  Convention  Army'  captured  at  Saratoga.  Dr.  Paulus 
Aemilius  Irving  is  now  a  member  of  the  Hampden  Sidney 
Board. 

Charles  C.  Johnston 

Judge  Peter  Johnston  removed  from  Prince  Edward  Coun- 
ty to  Washington  County  about  1810.  But  at  the  same  time 
he  entered  two  of  his  sons  at  college  at  Hampden  Sidney — 
Charles  Johnston  and  Peter  Johnston.  Charles  C.  Johnston, 
after  studying  at  Hampden  Sidney,  took  up  the  practice  of 
law  and  settled  at  Abingdon.  He  was  elected  to  congress 
from  that  district  in  1831.  In  June  of  the  following  year, 
going  over  to  Alexandria  to  see  a  friend,  he  fell  at  the  wharf 
on  Potomac  river  and  was  drowned.  He  had  a  son,  John 
Preston  Johnston,  who  was  killed  in  the  Mexican  war. 


1810]  159 

Judge  Eobert  W.  Hughes  married  a  daughter  of  Charles 
C.  Johnston. 

See  letter  of  Mr.  Johnston  to  John  B.  Floyd,  dated  Washington,  Dec. 
16,  1831  (not  long  before  his  death)  in  William  and  Mary  College 
Quarterly,  N.  S.,  I,  201. 

Summers,  History  of  Washington  County,   757. 

Charles  C.  Johnston's  brother,  Peter  C.  Johnston,  at  college 
with  him,  was  from  1832  to  1836,  clerk  of  Smyth  County.  It 
is  not  certain  that  John  Warfield  Johnston,  another  son  of 
Judge  Peter  Johnston,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney. 
He  was  at  any  rate  an  active  member  of  the  Union  Society. 
John  Warfield  Johnston  graduated  in  medicine  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Pennsylvania  in  1814.  He  was  the  father  of  United 
States  Senator  John  W.  Johnston. 

Charles  H.  Kennon 

b.  1786,  d.  1816.  Son  of  Charles  Kennon  of  Granville 
County,  North  Carolina.  At  Hampden  Sidney,  1807-1810, 
A.  B.,  April,  1810.  In  1813,  Dr.  Hoge,  for  one  reason  or 
another,  was  intending  to  resign  his  office  of  president.  He 
was  persuaded  not  to  do  so,  and  the  Board  voted  him  an 
executive  assistant — the  Rev.  Charles  H.  Kennon,  to  be  vice- 
president.  Apparently  Mr.  Kennon  did  not  at  once  come  to 
Hampden  Sidney.  Oct.,  1815,  Dr.  Hoge  wrote  to  a  friend — 
"Mr.  Kennon  in  the  character  of  vice-president  will  begin 
the  next  session  with  us  [session  begun  November  1st].  I 
shall  therefore  only  have  to  attend  to  the  senior  class,  and 
take  the  general  superintendence  of  the  seminary. ' '  Dr.  Hoge 
had  found  difficulties  in  managing  grammar  school  boys, 
sophomores,  etc.,  and  at  the  same  time  having  to  give  atten- 
tion to  a  rising  theological  seminary.  Mr.  Kennon 's  health 
was  none  too  good.  The  spring  of  1816,  he  went  to  Peters- 
burg to  a  meeting  of  his  Presbytery,  sickened  and  died  at 
the  house  of  Mr.  John  Grammer.  Dr.  Foote  says  that  Charles 
Kennon  was  a  man  of  great  ability. 

William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly,  XIV,  271. 
Christian  Monitor,  II,  86. 


160  [1810 

Samuel  H.  McNutt 

Born  in  Augusta  County,  Samuel  H.  McNutt  was  a  student 
1808-1809,  at  Washington  Academy  (now  Washington  and 
Lee),  before  coming  to  Hampden  Sidney.  While  a  student 
at  Hampden  Sidney  he  followed  theological  studies,  it  is  to 
be  supposed,  under  Dr.  Hoge.  He  was  a  minister  in  western 
Virginia  (on  New  River  for  a  time — cf  Foote  II,  581),  but 
as  early  as  1836  had  gone  out  to  Indiana.  His  church  there 
was  at  Rockville,  where  he  died  in  1869. 

Sterling  Neblett 

Son  of  Sterling  Neblett  of  Lunenburg  County.  Member  of 
both  Union  Society  and  Philanthropic  Society.  M.  D.,  Uni- 
versity of  Maryland,  1816.  Very  large  slave-holder  and 
planter  in  Mississippi  and  Virginia.  Died  at  "  Brickland, ' ' 
Lunenburg  County,  about  1880. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Isaac  Read 

Born  in  Charlotte  County.  Son  of  the  Rev.  Clement  Read. 
Entered  Hampden  Sidney,  1809.  M.  D.  Presbyterian.  Died 
at  advanced  age  in  Charlotte  County. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


Dr.  Isaac  Bead,  according  to  Powhatan  Bouldin,  lived  to  be  92.  He 
died  before  the  year  1878,  and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  no  account 
of  his  long  career  can  be  given  here.  It  is  difficult  in  these  times  to 
put  together  any  biographical  dictionary  of  the  old  worthies.  The  houses 
they  lived  in  have  disappeared  very  often,  their  descendants  are  scat- 
tered, and  it  is  frequently  by  the  merest  chance  that  any  memorials  have 
been  preserved.  A  close  visitation  of  the  west  and  the  southwest  would 
even  now  revive  the  memory  of  many  an  old  resident  of  Southside  Vir- 
ginia. 

Jesse  H.  Turner 

Born  in  Bedford  County,  son  of  the  Rev.  James  Turner, 
a  remarkable  man  and  an  extraordinary  preacher.     James 


1810]  161 

Turner's  oldest  son,  William  L.  Turner,  a  graduate  of  Wash- 
ington Academy  at  Lexington,  was  especially  known  as  a 
teacher  in  North  Carolina,  at  Raleigh  and  at  Fayetteville. 
He  was  a  minister  and  died  in  1813.  Jesse  H.  Turner  grad- 
uated at  Hampden  Sidney  April,  1810.  He  also  was  a  minis- 
ter for  a  good  many  years,  at  Fayetteville,  North  Carolina 
and  in  Virginia.  It  is  to  be  inferred  that  he  was  very  influ- 
ential in  bringing  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  around  to 
endorsement  of  Dr.  Rice's  plan  for  a  Union  Seminary  at 
Hampden  Sidney.  Jesse  H.  Turner  was  very  much  a  man  of 
business.  He  became  greatly  interested  in  farming,  and  per- 
haps that  was  the  main  reason  why  he  relinquished  his  work 
as  a  preacher.  He  was  determined  to  improve  his  land,  and 
that  took  up  time  and  thought.  He  had  a  farm  in  Henrico 
County,  near  Richmond,  was  president  of  the  Henrico  Agri- 
cultural Society,  and  is  to  be  accounted  a  benefactor  of  his 
country.     Parson  Turner  died  during  the  Civil  war. 

ef.  Farmer's  Register,  passim;  Southern  Planter,  Vol.  I,  Appendix. 

It  is  said  that  James  Turner,  one  frosty  Sunday  morning,  after  a 
prayer  and  a  hymn,  addressed  the  congregation  thus,  "  Brethren,  I  think 
I  sniff  frost  in  the  air,  and  my  opinion  is  we  had  all  better  go  home  and 
save  our  tobacco. ' ' 

Joseph  Morton  Venable 

Born  in  Charlotte  County  in  1792.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney  in  1808.  A.  B.,  1810.  Studied  medicine  in  Frederick 
County.  M.  D.  Surgeon  in  war  of  1812,  under  Gen.  Jackson. 
Presbyterian.  Shelbyville,  Kentucky.  Moved  to  South  Han- 
over, Indiana,  where  he  died  in  1838. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


18U 


John  Blair  Dabney 

Born  December  15,  1795.  Son  of  Judge  John  and  Susanna 
[Morris]  Dabney.  Named  after  his  father  and  Parson  John 
Blair  of  Eichmond.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1810.  A.  B., 
1811,  graduating  with  highest  honor.  Parts  of  his  Philan- 
thropic Society  oration  on  "The  Partition  of  Poland"  used 
as  specimen  of  eloquence  for  declamation.  A.  B.,  Princeton, 
1814.  Commonwealth's  attorney,  Campbell  County.  Epis- 
copal minister  for  many  years.  LL.  D.,  William  and  Mary 
1853.     Died  April  23,  1868. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


{i  About  fifteen  years  before  his  death,  Mr.  Dabney  was  persuaded  by 
Bishops  Meade  and  Johns  to  take  orders  in  the  Episcopal  Church,  and 
ministered  for  the  remainder  of  his  life  to  four  churches  in  his  neigh- 
borhood, without  making  any  charge  for  his  services." 

Brown,  Cabells,  etc.,  p.  561. 

Henry  Carrington 

Born  at  "Mulberry  Hill,"  Charlotte  County,  1793.  Son 
of  Judge  Paul  Carrington,  Sr.,  by  a  second  marriage.  En- 
tered Hampden  Sidney  1811.  A.  B.,  1811.  A.  B.,  Princeton, 
1814.  Soldier  in  war  of  1812.  Studied  law  under  Judge 
Coalter,  then  of  Staunton.  Member  of  Episcopal  church. 
Large  planter.  Man  of  fine  conversational  powers  and  most 
estimable  old  Virginia  gentleman.  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  many  years.  Died  at  his  home  "Ingleside," 
Charlotte  County,  in  1867. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Jesse  Hughes 

Son  of  David  Hughes  (who  married  Judith  Daniel)  of 
Hughes'  Creek,  Powhatan  County.     From  Hampden  Sidney 


1811]  163 

Jesse  Hughes  went  to  William  and  Mary.  On  finishing  at 
college,  in  addition  to  managing  the  home  plantation,  he  en- 
gaged in  the  practice  of  law.  He  married  Betty  Morton, 
daughter  of  Capt.  Hezekiah  Morton  of  Prince  Edward  County. 
Capt.  Hezekiah  Morton  was  the  son  of  Capt  John  Morton  ol 
the  Revolution,  who  took  six  of  his  sons  with  him  into  the 
army.  Jesse  Hughes  and  his  wife  died  at  nearly  the  same 
time,  in  1820,  of  a  malignant  fever,  when  their  son  Robert  W. 
Hughes  was  but  one  year  old.  On  being  advised  of  the  sad 
circumstances,  Gen.  Edward  C.  Carrington  of  Halifax,  an  in- 
timate college  friend  of  Jesse  Hughes,  came  with  his  carriage 
to  Hughes'  Creek,  and  prevailed  upon  Capt.  Morton  to  allow 
him  to  take  Robert  to  rear  and  educate.  The  boy  Robert  be- 
came U.  S.  District  Judge  after  the  civil  war. 

Confederate  Military  History,  vol.  Ill,  p.  949. 

William  Sterling  Lacy 

Oldest  son  of  Drury  Lacy ;  at  Hampden  Sidney  about  1811. 
Very  few  items  being  at  hand  regarding  William  S.  Lacy,  the 
elder,  who  spent  his  life  in  Arkansas  as  a  minister,  it  is  fitting 
to  record  here  the  succession  of  ministers,  descendants  and 
connections  of  Drury  Lacy,  vice-president  in  charge  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  William  S.  Lacy,  the  oldest  son,  became 
blind  in  his  old  age,  but  eyes  were  planted  in  his  soul ;  people 
came  to  hear  him  talk,  and  his  talk  at  times  fell  into  verse. 
He  was  the  father  of  the  Rev.  Beverly  Tucker  Lacy,  D.  D., 
and  of  Major  J.  Horace  Lacy  of  Fredericksburg  (whose  son 
is  the  Rev.  J.  Horace  Lacy  of  Winchester.)  Dr.  Drury  Lacy, 
second  son  of  Drury  Lacy,  senior,  was  the  father  of  the  Rev. 
William  S.  Lacy,  D.  D.,  of  Norfolk.  Dr.  J.  Horace  Lacy,  of 
Prince  Edward  County,  third  son  of  Drury  Lacy,  senior,  was 
the  father  of  the  Rev.  Matthew  Lyle  Lacy  of  West  Virginia. 
As  mentioned  elsewhere,  Mr.  Drury  Lacy's  daughters  mar- 
ried, the  one,  Samuel  Davies  Hoge,  and  the  other,  Jas.  H. 
Brookes. 


164  [1811 

' '  The  older  ministers  of  Virginia  used  to  say  that  a  sermon 
composed  by  Dr.  Moses  Hoge  (of  Hampden  Sidney  College) 
and  delivered  by  Drury  Lacy  (of  Hampden  Sidney  College), 
would  be  the  masterpiece  of  pulpit  eloquence.  Which  thing 
was  yet  to  be,  but  not  in  that  generation." 

See  Life  of  Moses  Drury  Hoge,  p.  20. 

Mann  Page 

b.  1791,  d.  1850.  Son  of  Major  Carter  Page  of  Cumberland 
County.  Educated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  (about  1811), 
and  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  (M.  D.,  1813).  Began 
the  practice  of  his  profession  at  Richmond,  but  very  soon 
settled  in  Albemarle  County  on  an  estate  belonging  to  his 
wife,  a  plantation  called  Turkey  Hill,  near  Cobham.  Turkey 
Hill  was  formerly  the  name  of  the  present  Keswick.  Dr. 
Mann  Page  was  the  father  of  Dr.  E.  C.  M.  Page  of  New  York, 
author  of  the  Page  Genealogy  cited  in  this  list. 

Genealogy  of  the  Page  Family,  2nd  Edition.     New  York, 
1893.     pp.  119-135. 


Major  Carter  Page,  [1758-1825],  for  some  years  a  Trustee  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College,  sent  five  of  his  sons  to  Hampden  Sidney  (viz.,  Mann, 
Nelson,  William  N.,  Robert  B.,  and  Thomas),  and  was  the  father-in-law 
of  President  Cushing  and  of  Professor  Dame. 

Edwin  Price 

Born  1795.  Son  of  Pugh  Williamson  Price  of  Prince  Ed- 
ward County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1810.  M.  D.,  New 
York,  1819.  Physician,  Charlotte  County,  1821-1838.  Re- 
moving to  Missouri,  settled  for  a  year  in  Howard  County, 
and  then  at  Brunswick,  where  he  died  in  1858. 

Dr.    Hooper's   Manuscript. 

Dr.  Edwin  Price  was  a  brother  of  General  Sterling  Price  and  of  Robert 
P.  Price  of  Prince  Edward  County  and  Missouri,  both  of  whom  were 
students  at  Hampden  Sidney  College. 


1811]  165 

William  N.  Scott 

b.  1789,  d.  1857.  Son  of  the  Rev.  Archibald  Scott  of 
Augusta  County,  who  came  from  Scotland  to  Pennsylvania 
about  1760,  a  lonesome  boy.  William  N.  Scott  was  a  pupil 
at  the  school  of  the  Rev.  William  Calhoun  in  Augusta  County ; 
and  for  a  time  was  a  student  at  Washington  Academy,  Lex- 
ington. He  passed  from  classical  studies  at  Lexington  to 
theological  studies  at  Hampden  Sidney.  In  1814  he  married 
Miss  Nancy  Daniel  of  Charlotte  County,  and  soon  after  set- 
tled in  Berkeley  County.  Mr.  Scott  had  been  a  teacher  in 
William  Calhoun's  school.  In  Berkeley  County  he  established 
a  school  of  his  own — for  girls — and  managed  it  successfully. 
In  1822  he  removed  to  Hardy  County,  and  there  spent  the 
rest  of  his  life,  a  preacher  and  teacher.  Like  his  father,  he 
was  distinguished  for  solid  and  well  directed  powers  of  mind. 
William  N.  Scott 's  son,  William  Cowper  Scott,  a  Presbyterian 
minister  (in  Charlotte  County;  at  Farmville,  Prince  Edward 
County,  and  again  in  Charlotte  County,  where  he  died,  1854) 
was  the  author  of  a  striking  book,  called  ' '  Genius  and  Faith. ' ' 
The  nucleus  of  this  book  was  a  series  of  articles  published  in 
the  Southern  Literary  Messenger,  1846  (while  the  author  was 
at  Farmville)  under  the  caption  "Poetry  and  Religion." 
The  book  was  published  in  1853. 

N.  Shelton 

Born  in  Albemarle  or  Nelson  County.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney,  1810.  Farmer  in  Goochland  County.  Moved  to 
Louisiana  in  1840.  Planter  and  held  public  office.  Died  in 
Louisiana  in  1863. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Robert  Strange 

Appleton  's  says  of  Judge  Strange :  ' '  Born  in  Virginia, 
1796,  d.  in  Fayetteville,  North  Carolina,  1854.  He  was  edu- 
cated  at    Hampden   Sidney   College   and   then  studied  law. 


166  [1811 

After  being  admitted  to  the  bar  he  settled  in  Fayetteville, 
North  Carolina,  and  in  1821  was  elected  to  the  North  Carolina 
House  of  Commons,  in  which  he  served  several  terms.  In 
1826  he  was  elected  Judge  of  the  Superior  Court,  and  held 
that  place  until  1836,  when  he  withdrew  from  the. bench  to 
take  his  seat  in  the  U.  S.  Senate.  He  continued  a  member 
of  that  body  until  1840,  a  Democrat,  when  he  resigned,  after 
refusing  to  obey  the  instructions  of  the  North  Carolina  legis- 
lature. On  his  return  to  Fayetteville  he  resumed  his  profes- 
sion and  subsequently  was  solicitor  of  the  5th  judicial  dis- 
trict of  North  Carolina.  The  degree  of  LL.  D.  was  con- 
ferred on  him  by  Rutgers  in  1840.  Judge  Strange  published 
for  private  circulation  a  novel  entitled  'Eoneguski,'  or  the 
Cherokee  Chief,'  in  which  he  preserved  many  of  the  tradi- 
tions of  the  region." 

If  Robert  Strange  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege, and  it  is  likely  that  he  was,  he  has  left  no  trace.  He 
was  born  at  Petersburg,  was  at  Washington  College  in  1812, 
and  it  is  probable  enough  was  of  the  large  number  of  students 
who  seceded  from  that  institution  about  1812.  Dr.  Battle, 
in  his  History  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina  (I,  433), 
mentions  Judge  Strange  as  a  Commencement  Orator  of  1837 : 
"a  polished  speaker,  a  graduate  of  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
especially  successful  as  a  criminal  lawyer  when  appearing  for 
the  defence."    Who  has  seen  the  romance  Boneguski? 

Facts  regarding  the  early  education  of  Judge  Strange  have 
recently  come  to  light  at  Chapel  Hill.  His  father,  James 
Strange,  was  born  in  Glasgow  and  after  receiving  a  medical 
education  at  Edinburgh,  settled  at  Petersburg,  Virginia,  in 
1783.  He  was  persuaded  by  his  maternal  uncle,  Mr.  French, 
to  abandon  medicine  and  become  a  merchant.  He  made  a 
fortune  as  a  merchant,  and  then  returning  to  Scotland,  lost 
his  money  in  speculations  at  Liverpool,  came  back  to  Virginia 
and  made  another  fortune.  He  died  in  1809.  James  Strange 's 
son,  Robert,  was  put  to  school  under  the  celebrated  Dr.  Cam- 
eron of  Lunenburg  County.  James  Strange  had  a  place  in 
Rockbridge  County,  and  his  son  Robert  was  at  school  for  a 


1811]  167 

while  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Houston  of  Rockbridge.  His  father 
returning  to  Scotland,  Robert  Strange  was  at  school  there; 
and  back  at  Petersburg  again  was  a  pupil  of  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Syme,  who  taught  many  boys  and  girls  of  that  region;  and 
then  was  a  pupil  at  the  New  Oxford  Academy,  half  way  be- 
tween Richmond  and  Petersburg.  Robert  Strange  was  at 
Hampden  Sidney  in  1811,  going  to  Washington  College  in 
1812.  As  a  boy  he  was  fond  of  writing  and  thought  of  mak- 
ing literature  his  business. 

Paul  Carrington  Venable 

Born  in  Prince  Edward  County  in  1794.  Son  of  Samuel 
W.  Venable.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1809.  M.  D.,  Phila- 
delphia. Died  1876,  at  Bedford  Springs,  Virginia.  Dr.  Ven- 
able's  home  was  at  "Wheatland,"  in  Mecklenburg  County. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript;  and 
Statement  of  William  8.  Morton,  1920. 

John  F.  Wallis 

It  is  pretty  certain  that  William  Bain  Alexander  Wallis, 
a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  1817,  was  a  son  of  the  Rev. 
James  Wallis  of  Mecklenburg  County,  North  Carolina.  It  is 
a  guess  that  John  P.  Wallis,  who  was  at  Hampden  Sidney 
about  1811,  was  also  from  Mecklenburg  County,  North  Caro- 
lina, and  was  perhaps  a  son  of  James  Wallis.  The  Rev.  James 
Wallis  was  himself  a  schoolmaster  of  note,  and  for  some  years 
before  his  death  in  1819,  was  a  Trustee  of  the  University  of 
North  Carolina.  At  the  opening  of  the  University  of  Alabama 
in  1831,  John  F.  Wallis  was  Professor  of  Chemistry  and 
natural  philosophy.  The  records  of  the  University  of  Ala- 
bama afford  no  other  information  regarding  Professor  Wallis. 
It  cannot  be  assumed  that  Professor  Wallis  (of  whom  we  know 
hardly  anything)  was  any  relation  of  the  celebrated  mathe- 
matician, John  Wallis,  Savilian  Professor  at  Oxford  during 
the  great  Civil  War. 


1812 


1812.     May  29. 

[Report  of  Committee  of  Board  of  Trustees  to  revise  the  laws  and 
regulations  of  College: 

1.  All  the  students  at  College  shall  be  arranged  into  five  divisions,  to 
be  denominated  the  Grammar  School,  the  Freshman,  Sophomore,  Junior, 
and  Senior  classes. 

2.  Every  student  in  the  Grammar  School  shall  read  the  whole  of  Cor- 
derius's  Colloquies;  3  dialogues  in  Erasmus;  Selectae  e  veteris,  part  1st; 
the  whole  of  selectae  e  profanis;  Mair's  Introduction;  Caesar's  Commen- 
taries, 6  books  of  the  Gallic,  and  2  of  the  civil  war;  such  parts  of  the 
Eoman  Antiquities  as  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  President;  the  whole  of 
Sallust;  Virgil  to  the  end  of  the  6th  Aeneid;  Horace  (the  indelicate 
parts  excepted)  ;  commit  the  Greek  Grammar;  and  read  in  Greek  Testa- 
ment St.  John's  Gospel,  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  and  33  dialogues  of  Lueian. 

He  shall  then  enter  the  Freshman  Class. 

3.  The  studies  of  the  Freshman  Class  shall  be  during  the  winter  ses- 
sion, the  9  following  orations  of  Cicero,  viz.:  against  Q.  Caecilius,  for 
the  Manilian  Law,  4  against  Cataline,  for  Archias  the  Poet,  for  Milo, 
and  for  Marcellus;  4  books  of  Xenophon;  and  common  Arithmetic — and 
during  the  summer  session,  the  5th  and  6th  books  of  Xenophon;  the 
remainder  of  Arithmetick;  and  4  books  of  Homer.  They  shall  then  join 
the  Sophomore  Class. 

4.  The  studies  of  the  Sophomore  Class  in  the  winter  session  shall  be 
Geography;  Algebra;  and  Cicero  de  officiis,  and  in  the  summer  session, 
6  books  of  Euclid's  Elements,  and  Trigonometry.  They  shall  then  join 
the  Junior  Class. 

5.  The  Studies  of  the  Junior  Class  in  the  winter  session  shall  be  Conic 
sections;  Surveying;  Navigation;  and  Chemistry — and  in  the  summer 
session  Natural  Philosophy;  Astronomy;  and  English  Grammar.  They 
shall  then  join  the  Senior  Class. 

6.  The  studies  of  the  Senior  Class  in  the  winter  session  shall  be  Logic; 
a  review  of  Geography;  Moral  Philosophy;  and  Criticism — and  in  the 
summer  the  Philosophy  of  the  human  mind;  the  Law  of  nature  and 
nations;  and  the  Elements  of  General  History.  *  * 

9.  There  shall  be  a  public  examination  of  the  students  at  the  end  of 
each  session,  before  the  President,  Teachers,  and  as  many  of  the  Trustees 
as  shall  attend.  And  if  any  student  shall  be  judged  materially  deficient 
at  the  spring  examination,  he  shall  nevertheless  proceed  in  the  studies 
of  his  class  until  the  close  of  the  summer  session;  and  if  it  then  appears 
after  an  examination  on  the  studies  of  the  whole  year  that  he  ought  to 
be  admitted  into  the  next  class,  he  shall  be  admitted  accordingly,  other- 
wise he  shall  be  turned  back  for  one  year.  And  no  student  shall  advance 
into  a  higher  class  until  the  President,  Teachers,  etc.,  are  satisfied  that 
he  is  prepared  for  such  advancement.] 


1812]  169 

John  D.  Paxton 

b.  1784,  d.  1868.  Brought  up  in  Rockbridge  County  on  a 
farm,  John  Paxton  went  to  Bedford  County  in  his  nineteenth 
year  and  stayed  there  three  years  in  business.  He  said  that 
about  1803  he  began  to  be  interested  in  leading  a  religious 
life,  '  and  most  earnestly  desired  to  see  a  Jew,  hoping  that  the 
sight  might  help  to  confirm  my  belief  in  the  Bible.'  He 
thought  he  ought  to  go  to  college,  but  did  not  know  how  he 
was  to  get  there.  His  father  allowed  him  to  take  some  of  his 
flour  down  to  Richmond,  by  freight  canoe,  and  in  this  hazard- 
ous way  John  Paxton  made  money  to  put  himself  through 
Washington  College  where  he  graduated  in  1810.  He  was 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Graham  Society  at  Washington 
College  (1809).  On  vacation  then  he  rode  out  to  Tennessee 
to  make  a  visit  to  two  of  his  sisters  who  had  married  and  gone 
west.  May  1810,  he  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  'having 
been  invited  by  Dr.  Hoge  to  assist  him  in  teaching.'  Mr. 
Paxton  was  teaching  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  studying  the- 
ology two  years.  He  entered  in  his  diary  that  the  'first  part 
of  the  session  of  1810  was  extremely  turbulent.  Many  of  the 
students  were  disposed  to  interrupt  the  peace  of  college.  A 
number  were  dismissed.  .  .  .  The  effect  of  the  college  in 
creating  an  intelligent  population  was  manifest.  This  was 
the  case  at  Lexington,  but  hardly  so  manifest  at  that  time 
as  at  Hampden  Sidney.  Dr.  Hoge  taught  one  or  two  classes, 
besides  the  instruction  given  to  students  of  theology.  The 
other  departments  were  not  filled  by  regularly  appointed 
professors,  but  by  young  men  who  were  graduated,  usually 
two  assisted  by  one  or  more  in  the  grammar  school.  This 
arrangement  may  not  have  been  the  best,  but  I  doubt  whether 
a  regularly  appointed  faculty  would  have  turned  out  much 
better  scholars  than  were  thus  made. '  Leaving  tutorial  work, 
Mr.  Paxton  spent  four  or  five  years  at  Norfolk,  from  1814,  in 
charge  of  a  church  there.  The  Brick  Church  was  put  up  at 
Hampden  Sidney  in  1820.  The  next  year  the  president  of 
the  college  was  a  layman,  and  in  1823  Mr.  Paxton  was  offered 


170  [1812 

the  care  of  the  Cumberland  Congregation ;  that  is  to  say,  the 
college  and  Farmville,  so  early  regarded  as  a  part  of  the 
college  community.  Mr.  Paxton  came  again  to  Hampden  Sid- 
ney the  fall  of  1823.  He  bought  the  Roxbury  farm  to  the 
west  and  made  it  his  home.  He  said  of  conditions  then :  '  In 
the  autumn  of  the  same  year,  1823,  Dr.  Rice  moved  to  Prince 
Edward  and  opened  the  theological  school.  A  new  state  of 
things  was  taking  place.  A  large  college  building  had  been 
erected  under  the  general  supervision  of  President  Cushing. 
A  new  brick  church  had  been  built,  the  old  Hall  [chapel  and 
church,  a  frame  building]  had  been  removed,  and  preparations 
were  making  to  put  up  buildings  for  the  theological  seminary. ' 
Mr.  Paxton 's  father  had  owned  slaves,  and  he  himself  owned 
them.  He  got  nervous  about  owning  them  (sent  eleven  to 
Liberia)  and  published  letters  on  the  subject  in  the  Richmond 
Visitor  and  Telegraph.  Influential  members  of  his  congrega- 
tion did  not  share  his  views,  and  after  discussing  the  matter 
with  his  church  session  he  resigned.  In  1833  he  published 
"Letters  on  slavery,  addressed  to  the  Cumberland  Congrega- 
tion." He  was  then  in  Kentucky,  and  like  John  Poage  Camp- 
bell was  unwilling  not  to  lecture  his  old  friends  and  antago- 
nists to  the  east.  From  1836  to  1838,  Dr.  Paxton  was  a  mi.-j- 
sionary  in  Syria.  He  was  married  a  second  time  at  Jerusalem, 
and  his  wife  was  careful  of  his  memory,  publishing  his  auto- 
biography in  1870.  Dr.  Paxton  died  at  Princeton,  Indiana, 
in  his  eighty-fifth  year.  He  was  active  as  a  minister — in 
Kentucky  and  Indiana — until  shortly  before  his  death. 
See  Hampden  Sidney  Magazine,  October,  1908. 

Robert  Boiling 

b.  1795,  d.  1876.  Grandson  of  Col.  Robert  Boiling  of 
"Chellowe,"  Buckingham  County.  Lived  a  quiet  farmer's 
life,  a  zealous  Methodist  and  good  man. 

Dr.  Mcllwaine's  Manuscript — Letter  of  Col.  E.  T.  Hubard  of 

Buckingham  County. 

See  Beminiscences  of  Daniel  Baker,  p.  60,  "I  love  and  respect  all  my 
fellow  students,  but  feel  a  peculiar  attachment  to  Mr.  Eobert  Boiling. 
The  students  have  endeavored  to  laugh  Mr.  Boiling  out  of  his  religious 
notions,  have  taken  occasion  to  call  him  Baker's  disciple. " 


1812]  171 

Francis  Browne  Deane 

Francis  B.  Deane  came  to  Virginia  from  county  Galway, 
Ireland,  a  boy  in  his  teens.  He  became  established  as  a  mer- 
chant at  Cartersville,  Cumberland  County,  and  was  one  of 
the  first  iron  manufacturers  of  midland  Virginia.  His  son, 
Francis  B.  Deane,  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  during 
the  year  1812,  going  thence  to  Washington  College  at  Lexing- 
ton. Francis  B.  Deane  made  his  home  chiefly  at  Lynchburg. 
He  had  a  place  also  at  Bear  Garden  or  Carter's  Ferry  in 
Buckingham.  Like  his  father,  he  was  interested  in  iron  and 
was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Tredegar  iron  works  at  Rich- 
mond about  1836.  Mr.  Deane  was  for  some  ten  years  a  Trus- 
tee of  Hampden  Sidney  College.     He  died  about  1860. 

cf.  Washington  and  Lee  Historical  Papers,  No.  4,  p.  162. 

Mr.  Deane  wrote  a  most  interesting  letter  in  1845  on  the 
manufacturing  establishments  of  Eichmond.  This  was  printed 
in  Redwood  Fisher's  Merchant's  Magazine,  II,  631-633,  and 
well  deserves  reprinting.  The  Tredegar  works  at  Richmond 
and  the  great  Richmond  mills  (especially  for  the  South 
American  flour  trade)  were  immensely  important  before  1860. 
"We  shall  be  allowed  to  remonstrate  at  our  local  tendency 
to  stress  the  mere  pedigree,  and  to  overlook  in  genealogical 
investigation  the  close  study  of  the  business  history  of  those 
enumerated. 

Powhatan  Ellis 

Powhatan  Ellis,  minister  to  Mexico,  etc.,  touched  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  rather  closely,  and  it  is  just  as  well  to 
include  his  name  in  this  list.  He  was  the  youngest  son  of 
Major  Josiah  Ellis  of  'Red  Hill,'  Amherst  County.  Leaving 
Washington  College,  Virginia,  in  a  rebellion  with  some  forty 
other  students  (after  having  been  there  three  years),  he  went 
to  Princeton,  but  being  denied  admission  in  consequence  of 
his  irregular  withdrawal  from  Lexington,  he  proceeded  to 


172  [1812 

Dickinson  College,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  graduated  in  Sep- 
tember, 1810.  The  spring  of  1811  he  read  law  at  Staunton. 
That  fall  he  went  to  Williamsburg  to  attend  the  law  lectures 
of  Judge  William  Nelson,  and  the  next  spring  came  to  Prince 
Edward  Court  House  to  write  in  the  clerk's  office  and  follow 
studies  under  Mr.  Henry  E.  Watkins.  The  fall  of  1812,  he 
returned  to  Williamsburg  to  finish  up  his  law  and  other 
studies.  He  settled  for  practice  at  Lynchburg,  and  very  soon 
had  an  opportunity  to  volunteer  in  the  war  of  1812.  In  1816, 
after  conference  with  General  Jackson  who  was  passing 
through  Lynchburg,  Mr.  Ellis  decided  to  try  his  fortunes  in 
the  southwest.  He  went  out  to  Illinois,  and  thence  to  Missis- 
sippi, where  he  remained  and  made  his  reputation.  His  com- 
panions as  far  as  Illinois  were,  among  others,  John  and  Win- 
ston Henry,  one  of  whom  had  been  with  him  at  Washington 
College,  and  the  other  with  his  brother  Thomas  at  Hampden 
Sidney. 

Southern  Literary  Messenger,  April,  1863. 

o 

So  Powhatan  Ellis  was  something  of  an  inmate  at  Hampden  Sidney 
the  summer  of  1812.  He  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Union  Society 
July  17th,  1812,  and  was  active  in  the  business  of  the  Society  during 
the  time  of  his  residence  in  the  neighborhood. 

John  S.  Fleming 

b.  1791,  d.  1858.  Mr.  Fleming  was  a  lawyer,  settled  in 
Goochland  County,  "a  man  of  decided  genius  and  much  wit, 
a  noble  man." 

Crosby,  Annual  Obituary  Notices.     Boston,  1859. 

Hamilton  Rowan  Gamble 

Born  1798  at  Winchester.  His  education  was  received  prin- 
cipally at  Hampden  Sidney  College :  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Philanthropic  Society  in  1812.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar,  a  year  or  two  later  he  went  out  to  Missouri, 


1812]  173 

settling  at  first  in  Howard  County.  In  1824,  he  was  secre- 
tary of  the  State:  and  was  soon  thereafter  established  at  St. 
Louis.  In  1838  he  was  chief  organizer  of  a  Presbyterian 
church  at  St.  Louis,  and  for  many  years  was  an  elder  in  that 
church.  In  1861  he  was  elected  Provisional  Governor  of 
Missouri;  as  a  constitutional  union  man,  and  held  the  office 
under  the  convention  until  his  death  in  January,  1864.  Gov- 
ernor Gamble  was  a  man  of  high  character,  a  big  man  phy- 
sically and  of  very  striking  presence.  He  was  a  jurist,  took 
the  legal  view  of  affairs,  was  chief  justice  of  his  State  a  few 
years,  and  left  on  the  record  a  body  of  sound  opinion.  His 
father,  Joseph  Gamble,  was  a  North  of  Ireland  man,  who 
settled  in  Virginia  about  the  year  1789. 

National  Cyclopedia  of  American  Biography. 


There  is  a  pretty  full  account  of  the  political  career  of  Governor 
Gamble  in  Missouri  Historical  Review,  Oct.,  1910.  He  was  a  Charter 
Trustee   of   Westminster   College. 

It  is  not  greatly  out  of  place  to  mention  here  that  in  1844  Hiram 
P.  Goodrich  (for  some  years  a  resident  of  Hampden  Sidney)  was  one 
of  the  founders  of  the  Missouri  Historical  and  Philosophical  Society. 
Mr.  Goodrich  presented  to  the  Society  a  copy  of  Chastellux's  Travels. 
He  was  a  New  School  man.  Governor  Gamble  was  an  Old  School  man, 
and  one  of  the  most  stately  of  that  school  of  Presbyterians. 

John  Kirkpatrick 

b.  1787,  d.  1842.  Son  of  Thomas  and  Mary  (Hutchinson) 
Kirkpatrick  of  Mecklenburg  County,  North  Carolina,  who  had 
come  from  the  North  of  Ireland  shortly  before  1787.  During 
his  boyhood,  John  Kirkpatrick  had  not  much  regular  school- 
ing, but  was  a  great  reader  and  remembered  what  he  read. 
At  the  age  of  nineteen,  he  began  formal  studies  under  the 
Rev.  James  Wallis,  a  highly  competent  teacher.  He  was  with 
Mr.  Wallis  for  seventeen  months,  then  entered  the  Junior 
class  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  and  in  eighteen  months 
finished  the  course  and  was  graduated  with  the  highest  honors. 
In  his  youth,  John  Kirkpatrick  was  of  a  vivacious  tempera- 
ment and  full  of  wit,  a  thoroughly  capable  man.     He  was 


174  [1812 

never  conspicuous  for  pliancy.  After  graduating  he  took  up 
the  study  of  the  law,  but  relinquished  it  for  the  work  of  a 
Christian  minister.  Dr.  Hoge  grounded  him  in  theology. 
During  his  post-graduate  time  at  Hampden  Sidney,  the  war 
of  1812  became  serious.  Mr.  Kirkpatrick  was  in  the  Prince 
Edward  County  draft.  He  did  not  claim  exemption.  From 
boyhood  he  had  been  fond  of  military  tactics,  of  music  and 
of  poetry.  He  joined  the  army  at  Norfolk,  and  served  six 
months  as  adjutant  (clerical  work)  on  the  staff  of  General 
Porter.  From  1815  to  1819  he  was  settled  at  Manchester,  as 
teacher  and  preacher.  During  this  time  he  learned  from  one 
of  the  Braidwoods  how  to  handle  deaf  mutes,  and  was  very 
successful  in  teaching  them.  From  1819  to  his  death  his  home 
was  in  Cumberland  County.  He  was  active  as  pastor  of  Cum- 
berland Church  until  1840.  His  health  then  gave  way.  Mr. 
Kirkpatrick  went  with  the  New  School  party  in  1837.  A 
grandson  of  his,  Mr.  Parrish,  is  a  member  at  this  time  (1920) 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College. 

Sprague  IV,  510-514. 

William  Quin  Morton 

b.  1794,  d.  1850.  At  Hampden  Sidney  College  about  1812. 
Merchant  and  farmer.  Lived  at  ''Scott-green,"  Prince  Ed- 
ward County,  near  Farmville.  Removed  to  Kentucky,  and 
perhaps  settled  for  a  while  in  Alabama.  Quin  Morton  was 
one  of  the  Trustees  of  the  University  of  Alabama  at  its  or- 
ganization in  1831. 

George  Morton  Payne 

Born  at  "Whitehall/'  in  Goochland  County  about  1795. 
Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1810;  left  1812.  Lawyer  of  emi- 
nence. Presbyterian  elder,  and  often  served  in  West  Hanover 
Presbytery  and  the  General  Assembly  of  the  church.  Called 
the  ' '  encyclopaedia  of  the  State. ' '  Lived  at  * '  Traveler 's  Rest ' ' 
in  Buckingham  County,  which  county  he  represented  in  the 


1812]  175 

legislature,  1826-28.  In  1848  moved  to  Florida  where  he  died 
in  1853.  The  Paynes  of  Goochland  were  Quakers  to  start 
with. 

Dr.   Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Farmer's  Register,  I,  508. 

Walter  Smiley  Pharr 

Born  in  Cabarrus  County,  North  Carolina;  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  1810-1812,  Walter  S.  Pharr  was 
as  early  as  1817  licensed  to  preach.  In  1827  he  was  principal 
of  Sugar  Creek  Academy,  an  old  established  school  near  Char- 
lotte, North  Carolina.  From  1836  until  his  death  in  1866,  he 
was  pastor  of  Mallard  Creek  church  in  the  same  neighborhood. 
Mr.  Pharr  was  one  of  the  first  Trustees  of  Davidson  College, 
and  was  a  member  of  the  Davidson  Board  for  more  than 
twenty  years.  From  1845  to  1854  he  was  president  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Davidson  College.  He  had  a  son  who 
was  also  a  minister  and  fond  of  poetry  in  the  pulpit.  At  a 
solemn  meeting  father  and  son  were  both  on  the  platform. 
The  son  rose  to  speak  and  the  father  reached  out  for  the 
young  man's  coat  tails  with  the  admonition:  "Now  Samuel, 
my  son,  we  must  have  no  rhyming  today." 

James  D.  Wood 

It  is  not  certain  that  James  D.  Wood  was  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  although  he  was  of  a  committee  on 
alumni  in  1842.  In  any  event  he  knew  who  the  students 
had  been  for  years.  He  has  been  listed  formerly  under 
the  year  1811.  About  1812  Mr.  Wood  was  a  member  of  the 
Union  Society,  but  at  the  same  time  the  Philanthropic  Society 
was  buying  books  of  him.  The.  Union  Society  had  been  ac- 
customed to  buying  books  through  Major  James  Morton.  It 
is  probable  that  Mr.  Wood  was  already  established  as  a  mer- 
chant near  the  college  (and  still  nearer  French's  store  at 
Kingsville)  ;  he  may  have  succeeded  by  purchase  to  the  busi- 
ness of  Martin  Smith.  James  D.  Wood  married  a  daughter 
of  Francis  Watkins,  and  eventually  came  to  live  at  'Poplar 


176  [1812 

Hill, '  which  had  been  the  residence  of  his  father-in-law.  Pro- 
fessor Branch  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  and  Dr.  Moses  D. 
Hoge  married  daughters  of  Mr.  Wood.  For  some  time  before 
1844,  the  year  of  his  death,  Mr.  Wood  was  a  Trustee  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  and  Treasurer.  From  1828  he  had  been 
Treasurer  of  Union  Seminary.    The  merchant  was  banker  then. 

cf  Life  of  Moses  D.  Hoge,  p.  71. 

Charles  Woodson 

Ignorance  would  be  no  sort  of  an  excuse  for  failure  to  write 
down  something  in  regard  to  the  name  Charles  Woodson. 
A  hundred  years  ago  one  of  the  most  intelligent  citizens  of 
Prince  Edward  County  was  Charles  Woodson  of  Prospect 
Post  Office  (see  index  to  Farmer's  Register).  There  is  noth- 
ing to  show  whether  that  particular  Charles  Woodson  was  or 
was  not  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  His  son, 
Charles  Van  der  Veer  Woodson,  however,  must  be  long  re- 
membered in  connection  with  Hampden  Sidney  College  for 
the  work  done  by  him  on  Dr.  Hooper's  Alumni  Catalogue. 
Charles  Woodson  [1781-1838],  father  of  Charles  Van  der 
Veer  Woodson,  was  the  son  of  Major  Tarleton  Woodson 
(d.  1819),  who  was  the  son  of  Charles  Woodson,  the  son  of 
Tarleton  Woodson.  Woodsons  were  settled  on  both  sides 
James  River,  and  the  enumeration  just  given  is  sufficient  to 
show  the  possible  origin  of  the  half  dozen  or  more  Woodsons 
who  seem  to  have  been  students  at  Hampden  Sidney  College 
from  1812  to  1817.  It  is  likely  that  Charles  Woodson,  1812, 
and  his  kinsmen  of  that  time  at  Hampden  Sidney  were  of  a 
Goochland  branch  or  a  Hanover  stem  of  this  old  established 
and  very  numerous  family. 

cf  William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly,  Vols.  IX-XI. 


X8X3 


Daniel  Baker 

b.  1791,  d.  1857.  Son  of  William  Baker,  of  Midway,  Liberty 
County,  Georgia,  a  remarkable  settlement  of  New  England 
Congregationalists,  "to  encourage  the  settlement  of  churches 
and  the  promotion  of  religion  in  the  Southern  plantations." 
These  Dorchester  Pilgrims  came  first  to  South  Carolina,  going 
over  into  Georgia  in  1752.  Daniel  Baker,  in  the  midst  of  a 
disturbed  youth,  resolved  to  be  a  minister  of  the  church 
militant.  Mr.  Gildersleeve,  pastor  of  Midway  church,  hap- 
pening to  spend  a  night  somewhere  in  company  with  Dr. 
Moses  Hoge,  told  Dr.  Hoge  of  young  Baker.  Dr.  Hoge  sug- 
gested the  placing  of  the  young  man  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College.  So  Daniel  Baker  embarked  in  a  schooner  for  Balti- 
more, and  reached  Hampden  Sidney  the  summer  of  1811. 
His  friends  took  him  away  and  sent  him  to  Princeton  the 
summer  of  1813.  He  graduated  there  in  1815,  and  immed- 
iately began  residence  in  Winchester,  as  assistant  to  Dr.  Wil- 
liam Hill.  After  being  pastor  of  churches  at  Harrisonburg 
and  at  Washington,  D.  C,  Daniel  Baker  commenced  his  work 
as  an  evangelist  about  1832.  He  was  a  man  of  great  energy 
and  gave  himself  wholly  to  whatever  he  was  about.  Moody 
had  his  "Revival  Sermons"  reprinted  for  distribution  in 
England,  as  the  best  of  their  kind  for  general  use.  Daniel 
Baker  died  in  Texas,  soon  after  he  had  organized  a  college 
there,  called  Austin  College  (now  Daniel  Baker  College  ( 1)  ). 
Dr.  Baker  was  much  in  Prince  Edward  County,  his  wife  being 
a  granddaughter  of  Archibald  McRobert. 

Francis  G.  Ballentine 

John  Ballendine  of  Prince  William  County,  iron  founder, 
became  interested  during  the  Revolution  in  the  establishment 
on  State  account  of  a  furnace  in  Buckingham  County.  Francis 


178  [1813 

G.  Ballentine,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about  1813,  may 
or  may  not  have  been  a  connection  of  John  Ballendine.  The 
name  is  unfamiliar  in  this  region.  Heretofore  apparently 
there  has  been  confusion  of  the  names  Francis  Ballentine  and 
Elisha  Ballentine.  The  Rev.  Elisha  Ballentine,  a  native  of 
New  York,  was  before  1837  an  instructor  at  Union  Seminary, 
and  then  for  a  few  years  principal  of  an  excellent  school  at 
Prince  Edward  Court  House.  He  was  neither  student  nor 
tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Hamilton  Ballentine,  of 
the  Island  of  Jamaica,  was  practicing  law  in  North  Carolina 
after  the  Revolution.  Francis  Ballentine,  having  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Union  Society  in  1813,  the  supposition  is  that  he 
was  a  theological  student.  Theological  students  at  that  time 
were  at  Hampden  Sidney  especially  from  North  Carolina. 
Daniel  Baker,  p.  67,  mentions  Ballentine  as  a  praying  and 
fighting  man. 

Edward  Baptist 

Edward  Baptist  of  Powhatan  County  was  a  member  of  the 
Union  Society  in  1811.  In  1813  he  was  graduated  A.  B.,  and 
in  1820  delivered  an  oration  at  the  Commencement  celebra- 
tion as  a  candidate  for  the  Master's  degree.  He  was  then 
called  'the  Rev.  Edward  Baptist.'  He  seems  to  have  been 
for  a  while  a  student  of  theology  at  Hampden  Sidney  under 
Dr.  Hoge,  but  was  doubtless  in  1820  a  minister  of  the  Baptist 
church.  He  conducted  a  classical  school  in  Powhatan  County, 
and  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Virginia  Baptist  Edu- 
cation Society  in  1830.  The  society  placed  nine  of  their 
wards  (students  looking  to  the  ministry  of  the  church),  at 
Edward  Baptist's  school  in  Powhatan,  and  four  :at  Mr.  Ball's 
school  in  Henrico  County.  In  1832  the  society  bought  a  farm 
in  Henrico,  near  Richmond  and  opened  the  Virginia  Baptist 
Seminary,  which  became  Richmond  College  a  few  years  after- 
wards. Edward  Baptist  has  been  accounted  one  of  the  found- 
ers of  Richmond  College.  Mr.  Baptist  removed  to  Alabama 
in  1838  and  died  there  in  1863.  He  married  a  sister  of  Judge 
Miles  Cary  Eggleston  of  Amelia  County  and  Indiana. 


1813]  179 

Richard  H.  Baptist 

Richard  H.  Baptist  is  listed  in  the  printed  catalogue  of  the 
Union  Society  under  the  year  1813.  He  was  a  lawyer  of  note, 
settled  in  Mecklenburg  County,  which  he  represented  in  the 
Senate  of  Virginia,  1836-1848.  Mr.  Baptist  died  in  1850. 
He  was  interested  in  the  State  Library,  and  was  for  some  time 
senate  chairman  of  the  joint  committee  on  the  library.  Ed- 
ward Baptist  and  Richard  H.  Baptist  were  doubtless  both 
natives  of  Mecklenburg  County. 

Lenaeus  Boiling 

Lenaeus  Boiling  of  Buckingham  was  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  in  1813,  a  riotous  year;  then  he  was  at  William  and 
Mary,  towards  1816.  He  was  the  son  of  Lenaeus  Boiling  of 
Buckingham,  who  represented  that  county  several  terms  in 
the  legislature.  Robert  Boiling  a  man  of  letters  and  curious 
knowledge,  settled  in  Buckingham  County  before  the  Revo- 
lution and  called  his  place  'Chellowe,'  possibly  an  Indian 
name.  An  old  trail  to  the  west  lay  along  what  was  for  years 
called  the  Buckingham  [or  buck  and  game]  road.  Robert 
Boiling  had  been  educated  abroad  and  was  interested  in  vine 
growing.  He  named  one  of  his  sons  Leneaus,  an  appellation 
of  Dionysus.  It  should  be  emphasized  in  this  connection  that 
vine  growing  in  this  part  of  the  world,  even  a  very  few  years 
ago,  was  respectable  whether  as  a  business  or  as  a  pastime. 

Nicholas  Carrington  Cabell 

b.  1796,  d.  1821.  Son  of  Governor  William  H.  Cabell.  At 
Hampden  Sidney  about  1813 ;  William  and  Mary  1816.  Law- 
yer.   Died  at  "Montevideo,"  Buckingham  County. 

Brown,  257. 


180  [1813 

John  Henry 

Youngest  son  of  Patrick  Henry.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney 
in  1812.  Planter.  Magistrate  of  Charlotte  County  until  1850. 
Episcopalian.  Died  at  "Red  Hill,"  (where  he  was  born), 
in  1868. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Thomas  Poage  Hunt 

b.  1794,  d.  1876.  Stepson  of  Dr.  Moses  Hoge,  [cf.  James 
W.  Hunt],  Thomas  P.  Hunt  spent  his  youth  a  good  deal  at 
Hampden  Sidney.  Having  passed  through  his  studies  at  the 
college  and  graduated  in  1813,  he  went  out  to  teach.  Towards 
the  year  1816  he  taught  at  the  home  of  a  merchant,  who  also 
kept  a  tavern,  his  bar  being  at  his  store.  He  attended  to  his 
employer's  books  as  well  and  was  familiarized  with  the  busi- 
ness. Every  boy  in  the  neighborhood  who  was  respectable 
looked  upon  the  moderate  use  of  liquors  as  'innocent,  harm- 
less, beneficial,  necessary. '  Then  Mr.  Hunt  was  engaged  to 
teach  in  the  family  of  a  man  of  considerable  wealth.  '  Honey 
drams  at  my  bedside  when  I  awoke,  mint  juleps  ready  when 
I  entered  the  breakfast  room,  toddy  and  sangaree  at  lunch, 
grog  at  the  first  course,  rum  at  the  second,  wine  at  the  third 
course,  varieties  of  drink  all  the  afternoon  on  the  sideboard 
and  punch  before  going  to  bed. ' — Thomas  Hunt  grew  to  have 
a  liking  for  drink.  Coming  home  in  vacation,  his  mother 
noticed  he  was  restless.  She  kept  no  such  tempting  sideboard. 
She  said  to  him,  "You  miss  your  drinks.  My  son,  take  care." 
Thomas  P.  Hunt  became  a  celebrated  temperance  lecturer. 
His  home  was  for  many  years  in  the  Wyoming  Valley,  Penn- 
sylvania. To  the  end  of  his  life,  he  thought  his  step-father, 
Dr.  Moses  Hoge,  was  about  the  best  man  that  ever  lived. 
During  the  civil  war,  Father  Hunt,  as  he  was  very  generally 
known,  was  chaplain  to  the  2nd  Pennsylvania  Heavy  Artil- 
lery. He  died  at  Wilkes-Barre,  at  a  good  old  age,  active 
almost  to  the  last. 

Autobiography  of  T.  P.  Hunt,  Wilkes-Barre,  1901. 


1813]  181 

Abner  Williamson  Kilpatrick 

b.  1793,  d.  1844.  A  son,  it  is  likely  (or  maybe  brother), 
of  the  Rev.  Joseph  D.  Kilpatrick,  who  for  some  years  after 
1809  kept  a  classical  school  in  Rowan  County,  North  Carolina, 
about  fifteen  miles  above  Salisbury.  In  1812  Josiah  J.  Kil- 
patrick was  also  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  (see 
Philanthropic  Society  Minutes).  Abner  W.  Kilpatrick,  after 
leaving  Hampden  Sidney,  was  for  a  year  at  Princeton  Semi- 
nary. Apparently  he  was  the  first  representative  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  on  the  students'  register  of  Princeton 
Seminary.  He  was  in  charge  of  churches  at  Dinwiddie  Court 
House  and  at  Boydton,  Mecklenburg  County,  Virginia,  from 
1816  to  1822;  was  pastor  of  the  church  at  Harrisonburg, 
Virginia,  1827-1837;  and  then  preached  for  a  few  years  in 
Tennessee  and  in  Mississippi.  He  died  in  Mississippi  in  1844. 
His  son,  William  Morton  Kilpatrick,  born  at  Harrisonburg 
in  1835,  was  also  a  Presbyterian  minister.  Rufus  H.  Kilpat- 
rick, of  Rowan  County,  North  Carolina,  graduated  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  in  1822. 

John  Randolph  sent  his  Bryan  wards  to  school  first  at 
"Ararat"  in  Prince  Edward  County  (William  S.  Lacy  in 
charge)  and  then  to  Mr.  Kilpatrick  in  Halifax  County.  The 
indefatigable  genealogist,  Dr.  Hayden,  has  printed  several 
letters  of  John  Randolph  that  show  how  high  his  opinion  was 
of  Mr.  Kilpatrick.  It  seems  probable  that  the  tutor  in  the 
case  was  Abner  Kilpatrick. 

Samuel  Davis  Morton 

b.  1795,  d.  1857.  A.  B.,  1813  Farmer.  Lived  at  'Roanoke 
Bridge,'  Charlotte  County,  where  he  had  a  large  plantation. 
Part  of  this  place  is  now  [1920]  owned  by  William  S.  Morton, 
[Hampden  Sidney,  1880],  a  nephew  of  Samuel  D.  Morton. 

Garrett  Quarles 

February  1841,  Garrett  M.  Quarles  was  writing  from 
Christian  County,  Kentucky,  to  the  American  Silk  Journal, 


182  [1813 

regarding  his  experiments  with  the  alluring  moras  multicaulis. 
We  will  suppose  that  he  was  the  Garrett  Quarles  of  Louisa 
County,  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1813.  If  he  had  paid  a  visit 
to  the  King's  Tavern  neighborhood  in  1840  or  in  1841,  he 
would  have  found  a  notable  plantation  of  mulberry  trees. 
Speculation  in  cocoons  was  exceedingly  brisk  around  King's 
Tavern  in  1840.  Those  who  got  from  under  in  time  were 
accounted  rather  immoral.  Who  has  not  seen  the  ancient 
mulberry  tree  at  King's,  relic  of  the  nervous  times  about 
1840? 

Thomas  E.  Watkins 

Son  of  Henry  A.  Watkins  of  Charlotte  County.  Lived  in 
Charlotte  County  on  a  plantation  called  "Giffgaff."  Mr. 
Watkins  was  born  in  1798  and  died  in  1861.  He  was  killed 
accidentally,  while  about  some  farm  business — putting  up  a 
barn.  His  son  was  the  late  Thomas  E.  Watkins  of  Charlotte 
County,  (a  graduate  of  Washington  and  Lee),  a  remarkable 
man  for  friendship. 

John  Willis  Wilson 

Born  Feb.  17,  1796,  Cumberland  County.  A  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  about  1813.  Graduated  at  University  of 
North  Carolina  in  1815  [?].  Studied  law  at  Judge  Creed 
Taylor's  Needham  Law  School,  Cumberland  County.  Prac- 
ticed law  in  Cumberland  County.  Elder  in  Presbyterian 
church.     Died  May,  1870. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


18X4 


Samuel  Clough  Anderson 

It  is  not  likely  that  Mr.  Anderson  was  a  student  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  About  1814,  when  he  was  a  law  student 
at  Prince  Edward  Court  House,  he  was  a  member  of  both  the 
Literary  Societies  at  Hampden  Sidney.  He  was  for  more 
than  thirty  years  from  1831  a  Trustee  of  the  college.  Living 
at  Prince  Edward  Court  House,  Mr.  Anderson  was  very  in- 
fluential in  the  affairs  of  the  college  and  of  the  neighborhood. 

Samuel  C.  Anderson  was  born  in  1788  in  Cumberland 
County.  His  father  lived  on  Willis  River.  When  he  was 
nearly  twenty-one,  he  became  interested  in  getting  more  of 
an  education  than  he  had.  There  was  an  excellent  classical 
school  about  six  miles  from  his  home.  To  this  school  he  went, 
arising  early  in  the  morning  and  walking.  He  then  taught  a 
school  in  Powhatan  County  for  four  years,  and  served  two 
campaigns  in  the  State  forces  during  the  war  of  1812.  He 
commenced  the  practice  of  the  law  in  1816  at  Prince  Edward 
Court  House,  having  studied  the  principles  under  Captain 
Henry  E.  Watkins.  Mr.  Anderson  was  from  the  first  success- 
ful at  the  bar,  especially  as  a  pleader.  About  1828  he  became 
a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  under  the  preaching 
of  Dr.  Nettleton,  a  powerful  evangelist.  Mr.  Anderson  was 
very  active  in  church  business.  He  made  a  famous  speech 
on  the  Old  School  side  in  the  Presbyterian  General  Assembly 
of  1837.  Samuel  C.  Anderson  was  conspicuously  an  indi- 
vidual. He  died  in  April  1865,  a  few  days  after  General 
Lee's  surrender. 

Sketch  in  Dabney's  Discussions,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  477-488. 

George  Lyddall  Gordon  Bacon 

Son  of  Col.  T.  G.  Bacon  of  Nottoway  County.  Dr.  George 
Bacon  was  a  physician,  practicing  in  Charlotte  County.     He 


184  [1814 

died  about  1825.    In  1818  he  fought  a  celebrated  duel  (with 
dirks)  with  Dr.  John  Hardaway,  at  Nottoway  Court  House. 

Dr.  Hooper 's  Manuscript. 

James  Horace  Lacy 

Born  in  Prince  Edward  County,  shortly  after  his  father, 
the  Rev.  Drury  Lacy,  had  withdrawn  from  active  connection 
with  Hampden  Sidney  College ;  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
about  1814;  M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsylvania,  1818.  Dr. 
Lacy  spent  his  life  in  Prince  Edward  County ;  was  well  known 
as  a  man  and  as  a  physician  in  all  that  region.  His  home 
was  at  a  place  called  "Lombardy,"  in  the  southern  part  of 
the  county. 

Nash  Legrand 

At  Hampden  Sidney  around  1814  (Philanthropic  Society 
Minutes),  Nash  Legrand  seems  to  have  settled  as  a  lawyer 
in  Alleghany  County,  which  he  was  representing  in  the  legis- 
lature in  1823.  His  will,  probated  in  1838,  is  recorded  in 
Charlotte  County.  He  was  the  son  of  the  Rev.  Nash  Legrand 
of  Charlotte  County,  and  was  for  a  term  a  member  of  the 
Council  of  State,  that  leisurely  Cabinet  which  Governor  Wise 
and  the  'radicals'  abolished  in  1851. 

William  H.  Patillo 

"Originally  of  Mecklenburg  County,  but  spent  most  of  his 
professional  life  at  Charlotte  Court  House,  where  he  was  the 
standard  physician  for  ia  long  time.  I  knew  him  well  and 
can  testify  that  he  was  as  good  a  man  as  he  was  a  skilful 
physician."  [Dr.  Wm.  H.  Ruifner,  in  History  of  Washington 
College,  No.  4,  p.  165.] 

Was  Dr.  Patillo  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College? 
He  and  his  brother,  Jesse  H.  Patillo,  are  listed  under  1814-15 
as  students,  both  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  at  Washington 


1814]  185 

College.  It  is  certain  that  by  the  mutations  of  choice  or  neces- 
sity boys  of  Southside  Virginia  went  now  and  then  for  a  year 
to  the  one  college  and  then  for  a  year  to  the  other  college. 
Confusion  has  arisen  at  Hampden  Sidney  from  the  difficulty 
of  saying  off  hand  whether  certain  names  printed  on  the  Liter- 
ary Society  catalogues  were  names  of  students  or  merely  of 
honorary  members.  And  even  a  thorough  overhauling  of  the 
records  of  the  Literary  Societies  will  not  settle  the  matter  in 
every  case.  However  that  may  be,  Dr.  Patillo  (M.  D.,  Uni- 
versity of  Maryland,  1817)  was  for  some  years  a  Trustee  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College.     He  died  in  1855. 


X815 


John  M.  Alexander 

If  the  Union  Society  Catalogue,  which  is  full  of  absurd 
blunders,  puts  down  John  M.  Alexander  (a  student  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  about  1815),  as  of  Rockbridge  County, 
there  is  no  very  good  reason  to  hold  by  the  assertion.  For 
instance,  the  Union  Society  Catalogue,  year  1808,  lists  John 
Baud.  Who  was  John  Baud?  He  seems  to  have  been  an 
unnecessary  reconstruction,  a  strange  figment  due  to  the  hur- 
ried reading  of  a  line  in  the  minute  book: — "John  B.  and — " 
[and  somebody  else].  Extinguish  the  individuality  of  B.  in 
this  line,  take  the  n  for  a  a,  and  there  is  John  Baud  framed 
up  like  a  regular  sophomore.  However,  Dr.  Archibald  Alex- 
ander had  a  brother  named  John  (a  remarkable  man)  who 
was  born  in  the  year  1776.  He  might  have  been  sending  a 
son  to  college  in  1815.  And  about  1840  (when  the  name  John 
M.  Alexander  appears  on  the  Washington  and  Lee  catalogue) 
John  M.  Alexander  of  1815  may  have  had  a  son  ready  for 
college  discipline.  But  why  should  John  M.  Alexander  come 
all  the  way  in  1815  from  Washington  College  to  Hampden 
Sidney  College?  All  we  can  say  is  that  about  that  time 
students  shifted  from  college  to  college  for  reasons  known  to 
themselves  and  their  teachers.  Suppose  also  this  John  M. 
Alexander  was  from  Mecklenburg  County,  N.  C. 

Robert  S.  Carrington 

Robert  Carrington  of  Charlotte  County  removed  to  Arkan- 
sas not  long  after  1833.  He  had  been  a  neighbor  of  John 
Randolph  in  Charlotte  County,  and  was  often  at  odds  with 
Mr.  Randolph.  They  came  near  having  a  very  serious  falling 
out  over  the  running  of  a  plantation  road.  Mr.  Carrington 
was  "one  of  the  few  persons  not  afraid  of  Mr.  Randolph." 
John  Randolph  would  run  over  people,  as  we  say ;  if  they  let 


1815]  >  187 

him  run  over  them,  he  was  very  apt  to  despise  them,  whereas 
if  they  stood  up  for  their  rights  he  respected  them.  He  and 
Robert  Carrington  were  known  to  be  personal  enemies,  at 
a  time  when  a  quarrel  often  meant  a  funeral,  and  yet  John 
Randolph  listed  Mr.  Carrington  as  a  man  he  called  friend, 
because  of  his  upright  and  courageous  character.  We  have 
supposed  that  Robert  Carrington  who  went  to  Arkansas  was 
Robert  S.  Carrington,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about 
1815. 

Powhatan  Bouldin,  Home  Eeminiseences  of  John  Eandolph. 

Eli  Washington  Caruthers 

Born  in  Rowan  County,  North  Carolina,  1793 ;  d.  1865. 
Prepared  for  college  at  the  school  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  D.  Kil- 
patrick  near  Salisbury.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney,  but  com- 
pleted his  college  course  at  Princeton,  graduating  with  honor 
at  Princeton  in  1817,  and  then  going  through  Princeton  Semi- 
nary. In  1820  he  became  assistant  to  the  Rev.  David  Caldwell 
of  Guilford  County,  North  Carolina  (Alamance  Church),  and 
was  in  charge  of  that  church  until  his  death.  Dr.  Caldwell 
had  settled  there  in  1768.  So  those  two  men  were  pastors  of 
that  congregation  ninety-three  years.  Dr.  Caruthers  was  an 
advocate  of  internal  improvements,  railroads^  etc.,  was  a 
steady  friend  of  education,  and  aided  a  number  of  young 
men  out  of  his  private  means:  among  these  was  his  relation 
and  ward,  Washington  Caruthers  Kerr,  the  geologist.  Dr. 
Caruthers  devoted  much  time  to  investigation  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary history  of  the  State.  He  published  in  1842,  at  Greens- 
boro, "The  Life  and  Character  of  the  Rev.  David  Caldwell, 
D.  D.,  with  some  account  of  the  Regulation."  This  was  a 
first-hand  study  of  a  remarkable  man  and  a  remarkable  move- 
ment. In  1854-56,  Dr.  Caruthers  brought  out  at  Philadelphia, 
"Revolutionary  Incidents  and  Sketches  of  Character,  chiefly 
in  the  Old  North  State."     Two  volumes. 

National  Cyclopaedia  of  American  Biography. 


188  r  [1815 

John  Flood  Edmunds 

Born  in  Brunswick  County;  brother  of  Edwin  Edmunds 
(1800).  At  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1815  (see  Philan- 
thropic Society  Minutes)  John  F.  Edmunds  settled  in  Char- 
lotte County  on  the  rich  tobacco  lands  about  Wardsfork. 
He  was  a  most  energetic  and  successful  farmer,  making  a  repu- 
tation particularly  as  a  tobacco  raiser.  [See  his  "Concise 
directions  for  the  cultivation  and  management  of  tobacco." 
Farmer's  Register,  vol.  I,  (1834)  p.  641ff.  This  article  was 
republished  as  a  separate  by  the  Southern  Planter,  about  fifty 
years  ago.]  Mr.  Edmunds  died  in  1863.  He  left  $100  to  each 
of  the  four  churches  at  Charlotte  Court  House. 

In  1835  he  was  part  owner  of  the  Black  Arabian,  a  horse 
that  had  been  presented  to  President  Jackson.  This  horse 
was  kept  at  Mr.  Tom  Flournoy's  in  Prince  Edward  County. 

Peter  Hales 

Dr.  Peter  Hales  of  Buckingham  County  was  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College  about  1815.  Dr.  Hooper  lists  him, 
but  Dr.  Hooper  was  not  able  to  revise  his  manuscript  cata- 
logue for  the  press.  The  very  considerable  work  done  by  Dr. 
Richard  Mcllwaine  (in  coadjutorship  with  Dr.  Hooper)  seems 
to  have  disappeared.  Such  items  of  the  vexatious  record  are 
analogous  to  what  happens  in  the  clearing  of  the  bush — but 
we  still  live  in  the  bush,  so  what  are  we  to  expect  ?  Our  new 
grounds  have  been  unstable  and  the  old  tilled  spots  have  been 
often  thrown  out  of  the  shift.  However,  it  is  at  least  certain 
that  Peter  Hales  was  at  Hampden  Sidney,  (see  Philanthropic 
Society  Minutes,  1815). 

Thomas  Jefferson  Perkinson 

It  is  to  be  supposed  that  Thomas  Perkinson  of  Amelia 
County  (son  of  Thomas  Perkinson,  died  1816),  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  about  1815  (William  and  Mary,  1818)  was 
the  father  of  Thomas  E.  Perkinson,  for  many  years  a  Trustee 


1815]  189 

of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  and  Treasurer.  Among  the 
Trustees  of  the  Civil  war  period  none  was  more  interested 
and  diligent  than  Mr.  Perkinson.  Thomas  J.  Perkinson  was 
perhaps  the  brother  of  Matthew  R.  Perkinson  of  Amelia,  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  1821,  who  died  in  Amelia  County 
in  1831. 

John  Silliman 

b.  1786,  d.  1838.  A  native  of  Cabarrus  County,  North 
Carolina,  John  Silliman  came  to  college  late.  He  was  sent 
to  Hampden  Sidney  from  John  Makemie  Wilson's  Cabarrus 
County  School.  It  is  pretty  certain  he  was  one  of  Dr.  Hoge  's 
theological  students  at  Hampden  Sidney.  For  a  year  he  was 
co-pastor  with  the  Rev.  Matthew  Lyle  at  Briery  and  Buffalo 
churches,  Prince  Edward  County.  From  1819  to  1836,  John 
Silliman  was  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Morgan- 
ton,  North  Carolina.  In  1836,  he  went  to  Sharon,  Illinois, 
and  died  there  shortly  afterwards,  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church.  It  is  likely  that  of  all  the  students  on  the  roll  of 
Union  Seminary  in  Virginia,  John  Silliman,  born  in  1786,  fell 
farthest  back  into  the  eighteenth  century. 

Francis  Thornton 

Born  in  Charlotte  County,  Francis  Thornton  was  a  student 
at  Hampden  Sidney  around  1815  (Union  Society  Minutes, 
July  14,  1815).  As  early  as  1818  he  was  a  minister  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  From  1822  to  1836  he  was  in  charge 
of  churches  in  Rappahannock  and  Warren  Counties,  Virginia. 
He  went  to  Kentucky,  and  was  as  late  as  1845  pastor  of 
Beulah  Church  near  Louisville. 

Foote  II,  199;  List  of  Winchester  Presbytery. 

As  an  indication  of  how  the  records  stand,  additional  facts  will  be 
appended  here,  instead  of  being  incorporated  in  the  note  and  the  whole 
reworked.  The  Washington  and  Lee  General  Catalogue,  sub.  1815-16, 
lists — * '  Francis  Thornton :  Spottsylvania  Co. :  soldier  in  war  of  1812 : 
Presbyterian  minister:  Kentucky:  Died  1881,  aged  84."  The  Francis 
Thornton  of  the  two  catalogues  is  undoubtedly  the  same.    Union  Society 


190  [1815 

catalogue  assigned  Mr.  Thornton  to  Cumberland  County  because  the 
compilers  (very  much  in  a  hurry)  fancied  that  he  belonged  there.  The 
note  above  assigned  him  to  Charlotte  County  because  after  a  little  in- 
vestigation that  seemed  more  likely.  The  authors  of  the  Washington 
and  Lee  Catalogue  were  methodical  and  we  will  accept  their  statement. 

Francis  Thornton,  b.  1796,  d.  1881,  was  the  son  of  Francis  Thornton 
of  ' '  Fall  Hill, ' '  Spottsylvania  County,  who  married  a  daughter  of  Judge 
Harry  Innes  of  Kentucky.  Francis  Thornton  of  the  notice  was  brother- 
in-law  of  James  H.  Fitzgerald  of  Fredericksburg,  a  remarkable  man  as 
Presbyterian  and  in  other  ways. 

See  William  and  Mary  Coll.  Quarterly,  VI,  112,  243. 

Abraham  Woodson  Venable 

Lanman's  Dictionary  of  Congress,  published  in  1864,  has 
this  to  say  of  Mr.  Venable:  "Born  in  Prince  Edward  County, 
Virginia,  in  1799 ;  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 
1816  ;  studied  medicine  for  two  years  and  then  went  to  Prince- 
ton College  where  he  graduated  in  1819 ;  he  then  studied  law 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  North  Carolina  in  1821.  He 
was  a  Presidential  Elector  in  1832  and  also  in  1836;  and  a 
Representative  in  Congress  from  North  Carolina  from  1847 
to  1853.  His  father  and  six  uncles  were  in  the  Revolutionary 
war  [all  at  the  battle  of  Guilford  Court  House].  He  took 
part  in  the  Rebellion  of  1861,  as  a  member  of  the  so-called 
Confederate  Congress."  Mr.  Venable  sat  in  this — er — Con- 
gress from  1861  to  1864.  He  died  in  1876  at  Oxford,  Gran- 
ville County,  North  Carolina,  where  his  home  had  been  for 
many  years.  He  was  an  elder  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
over  fifty  years,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Union 
Seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

NOTE :    Mr.  Venable 's  name  was  Abraham  WatMns,  not  Woodson : 
statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County. 

William  Claiborne  Walton 

Was  born  in  the  county  of  Hanover,  in  1793.  His  father 
died  an  early  victim  to  intemperance,  and  the  youthful  days 


1815]  191 

of  the  son  were  passed  under  circumstances  most  unfavorable 
to  the  formation  of  religious  character.  In  his  eighteenth 
year  he  went  to  reside  in  the  family  of  a  Presbyterian  elder 
in  Winchester,  and  shortly  afterwards  had  his  mind  directed 
to  the  subject  of  religion  by  a  sermon  which  he  heard  from  a 
Methodist  preacher.  His  pastor,  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  Hill, 
proposed  to  him  that  he  should  be  educated  for  the  ministry 
under  the  care  of  Winchester  Presbytery.  Accordingly  in 
the  autumn  of  1811  he  repaired  to  Hampden  Sidney  College. 
In  October  1814,  he  was  licensed  to  preach,  although  he  was 
still  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  remained  there  a  con- 
siderable time  afterwards.  After  preaching  for  some  time  at 
Berryville  in  Northern  Virginia,  he  was  ordained  as  a  minister 
in  1818.  In  1823  he  became  pastor  of  the  Third  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Baltimore,  where  he  remained  about  eighteen 
months.  His  health  was  becoming  bad.  In  1827  he  went  to 
Alexandria  as  pastor  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church 
there,  and  in  1833  took  charge  of  the  Free  Church  of  Hart- 
ford, Connecticut.  He  died  at  Hartford  early  in  1834.  Mr. 
Walton  was  first  of  all  an  evangelist.  The  Rev.  Joshua  Dan- 
forth  of  Alexandria  published  a  memoir  of  his  life  (New 
York,  1837). 

Spragne  III,  565. 


1816 


Bercyman 


Sept.  6,  1816,  the  Philanthropic  Society  met  and  adopted 
resolutions  in  memoriam:  "our  deceased  friend  Mr.  Berry- 
man.  ' '  Crape  to  be  worn  for  two  weeks  in  respect.  Nothing 
beside  remains  as  of  record. 

Edward  Carrington 

Born  in  Cumberland  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney, 
1816.  Cotton  planter.  Died  at  "Newstead,"  Polk  County, 
Texas,  1865. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Christopher  Clarke 

Christopher  Clarke,  a  contemporary  of  Callohill  Mennis, 
was  a  great  Bedford  lawyer.  He  represented  the  Bedford 
district  in  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1829,  and  died 
during  the  sessions  of  the  Convention.  It  is  to  be  supposed 
that  Christopher  Clarke,  1816,  was  his  son. 

William  H.  Elliott 

William  H.  Elliott  of  Charlotte  County,  a  student  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  about  1816,  had  been  prepared  for  college  at  Dr. 
Rice 's  school  near  Charlotte  Court  House.  He  lived  to  be  an 
old  man,  dying  after  the  year  1876.  He  put  together  his  notes 
on  John  Randolph,  and  was  thinking  of  publishing  them 
when  Powhatan  Bouldin  began  collecting  Randolph  anecdotes. 
Mr.  Elliott  then  placed  all  of  his  material  in  Mr.  Bouldin 's 
hands,  and  there  are  numerous  quotations  from  the  manu- 
script in  Mr.  Bouldin 's  "Home  Reminiscences  of  John  Ran- 
dolph." Mr.  Bouldin  speaks  of  William  H.  Elliott  as  being 
a  man  of  genius  and  a  poet.  'Poems  of  his  were  copied  into 
London  periodicals.' 


1816]  193 

John  Randolph,  it  seems,  was  considerably  a  visitor  of 
schools.  When  he  lived  at  'Bizarre'  on  Appomattox  river, 
he  was  often  at  Mr.  Lacy's  Ararat  School  in  Prince  Edward. 
And  William  H.  Elliott's  reminiscences  are  proof  that  to- 
wards the  end  of  Dr.  Rice's  time  in  Charlotte  County,  Mr. 
Randolph  used  to  drop  in  at  Dr.  Rice's  school.  The  school 
was  some  fifteen  miles  from  the  'Roanoke'  plantation. 

Peter  Guerrant 

Peter  Guerrant  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College 
around  the  year  1816.  Peter  Guerrant,  of  Goochland,  is  listed 
among  the  students  for  1821  at  Judge  Taylor's  'Needham' 
Law  School.  Peter  Guerrant  represented  Goochland  in  the 
House  of  Delegates,  1828-1830,  1850-1851. 

William  H.  McFarland 

As  early  as  1813,  the  name  William  H.  McFarland  of 
Lunenburg  County  appears  on  the  minutes  of  the  Philan- 
thropic Society.  He  may  have  been  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College  several  years,  indeed  may  have  graduated, 
since  about  1825  he  was  elected  to  membership  in  the  Literary 
and  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  a 
society  whose  purpose  it  was  to  admit  none  but  those  who  had 
at  least  received  the  first  degree  in  the  arts.  James  McFar- 
land, no  doubt  a  brother  of  William  H.  McFarland,  was  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1816. 

William  H.  McFarland  was  the  son  of  James  McFarland  of 
McFarland 's,  Lunenburg  County,  a  merchant  of  large  estate 
(who  had  come  from  Glasgow  in  Scotland) ;  James  McFarland 
died  in  1837,  and  left  his  house  in  Greenock  to  his  son 
William.,  William  H.  McFarland  was  a  very  well-known  man, 
as  lawyer  (law  studies  at  William  and  Mary,  1816  and  at  the 
Litchfield  Law  School,  Connecticut,  1818).  He  was  also  a 
financier.  He  made  his  home  at  Richmond.  He  was  Presi- 
dent of  the  Farmers'  Bank  of  Virginia;  was  a  member  of  the 
Provisional  Congress  of  the  Confederacy;  and  in  1871  was 


194  [1816 

on  the  Board  of  Visitors  of  William  and  Mary  College.  In 
1840  Mr.  McFarland  was  Alumni  Association  orator  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney.  He  was  then  elected  to  honorary  membership 
in  the  Union  Society. 

Harvey  Mitchell 

' '  Spent  his  boyhood  and  early  youth  in  the  town  of  Lynch- 
burg. His  parents  resided  in  the  county  of  Amherst  at  a 
beautiful  place  visible  from  almost  every  point  of  Lynchburg. 
When  a  small  boy  Harvey  Mitchell  manifested  a  great  talent 
for  drawing  and  painting,  and  with  this  was  combined  a  genius 
highly  poetic.  He  practiced  his  profession  of  portrait  painter 
at  Lynchburg  for  some  years.  His  numerous  skits,  illustrated 
by  his  own  humorous  drawings,  were  much  in  the  style  of 
Porte  Crayon,  whose  articles  in  Harper's  Magazine  have  been 
so  well  received.  Mr.  Mitchell  also  wrote  dramas,  depicting 
admirably  the  foibles  of  the  community  in  which  he  lived. 
In  conjunction  with  his  brother  Stephen  Mitchell,  he  at- 
tempted to  publish  a  periodical,  but  the  undertaking  had 
little  support."  [Sketches  and  Recollections  of  Lynchburg, 
p.  103.]  For  a  specimen  of  Harvey  Mitchell's  work,  see 
Johnston's  Old  Virginia  Clerks,  p.  78 — portrait  of  James 
Steptoe,  said  to  be  the  original  of  Dr.  George  W.  Bagby's 
"Old  Virginia  Gentleman." 

At  Hampden  Sidney  around  1816,  Harvey  Mitchell  left  a 
record  as  clerk,  and  a  good  one,  of  the  Philanthropic  Society. 
Mr.  Mitchell  married  a  daughter  of  Judge  Peter  Johnston. 
In  1858  he  was  living  in  Washington,  holding  some  minor 
government  office.  Like  other  artists,  he  had  found  it  difficult 
to  settle  down  to  every  day  business.  In  1821  he  was,  for 
instance,  a  student  at  Judge  Taylor's  Needham  Law  School. 

Clement  C.  Read 

Son  of  Isaac  Read  of  Charlotte  County,  who  was  a  brother 
of  the  Rev.  Clement  Read.     Merchant  and  tobacco  manufac- 


1816]  195 

turer  at  Farmville,  Prince  Edward  County,  and  President, 
Farmer's  Bank.  Secretary  and  member  Board  of  Union 
Seminary  thirty  years.     Died  1871. 

Dr.  Mcllwaine's  Manuscript. 

Thomas  Edmunds  Read 

Son  of  Rev.   Clement  Read  of  Charlotte   County.     Died 
young. 

Dr.  Mcllwaine's  Manuscript. 


1817 


James  Baber 

The  name  James  Baber  is  found  on  a  list  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Union  Society  for  1816-1817.  And  in  the  Prince- 
ton Seminary  catalogue,  James  Baber  is  accredited  to  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  The  record  as  given  in  the  Princeton 
Seminary  Catalogue  is  that  James  Baber,  born  in  Hanover 
County,  1794,  after  having  studied  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege was  a  student  at  the  Associate  Reformed  Seminary  in 
New  York,  and  was  then,  1819-1821,  at  Princeton  Seminary. 
He  was  a  Presbyterian  minister  in  Maryland,  Virginia  [Port 
Republic  1832,  and  also  a  teacher  there:  Tygart's  Valley, 
1833],  Pennsylvania,  and  the  District  of  Columbia.  Mr.  Baber 
died  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  in  1863. 

It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  the  Union  Society,  from  1812 
on  towards  1820,  was  composed  largely  of  students  who  were 
at  Hampden  Sidney  primarily  for  theological  studies.  The 
list  of  members  from  June,  1817,  to  November,  1818,  was 
about  as  follows : — Robert  N.  Anderson,  John  0.  Baker,  James 
H.  Brookes,  Hugh  Caldwell,  Thomas  Caldwell,  John  N.  Camp- 
bell, John  M.  Fulton,  John  N.  Gordon,  James  G.  Hamner, 
Benjamin  A.  Hutcheson,  James  H.  C.  Leach,  Joseph  Nimmo, 
Daniel  A.  Penick,  Walter  S.  Pharr,  James  B.  Stafford,  James 
Wharey  [June,  1817]  :  Josiah  Harris,  Cyrus  Johnston,  Wil- 
liam H.  Pollard,  John  M.  Erwin,  William  Hammersley,  Jo- 
seph S.  Edie,  James  Houghteling,  [Nov.,  1817]  :  Jesse  S. 
Armistead,  Joseph  S.  Baker,  Thomas  Davis,  James  Duncan, 
Henry  N.  Pharr,  William  S.  White,  Allen  D.  Metcalf  [Nov., 
1818].  And  earlier  there  had  been  James  Baber,  Daniel 
Baker,  William  C.  Walton,  &c. 

William  I.  B.  Bedford 

July  23,  1836,  there  was  formed  at  Prince  Edward  Court 
House  [see  Farmers'  Register,  IV,  315]  a  Mineralogical  So- 


1817]  197 

ciety  of  Virginia.  Richard  N.  Venable  was  president,  and 
Dr.  William  S.  Morton  was  secretary.  Among  the  members 
whose  names  have  been  preserved  (half  of  these  Trustees  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College),  was  William  I.  B.  Bedford,  of 
Charlotte  County  [and  then  of  Mecklenburg  County],  who 
had  been  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1817 :  late  enough 
no  doubt,  to  hear  young  Mr.  Cushing  talk  about  geology  in  a 
modern  manner.  In  1818,  Henry  Bedford  of  Charlotte  was 
a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  in  1825,  Stephen  Bedford, 
also  of  Charlotte.  Thomas  Bedford  of  Charlotte  County  died 
in  1785,  whose  son  Stephen  had  a  son  Stephen  who  died  in 
1856.  No  Bedfords  have  been  students  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  since  1825. 

Calendar  of  Board  Minutes,  p.  114. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

It  was  probably  William  I.  B.  Bedford  who  told  the  story 
given  by  Bouldin  as  illustrative  of  some  of  John  Randolph's 
drastic  methods.  Mr.  Randolph  wanted  a  piece  of  land  be- 
longing to  Mr.  Howell  Read.  There  were  some  old  graves  on 
the  land.  Finally  Mr.  Randolph  persuaded  Mr.  Read  to  sell 
the  land.  They  met  to  draw  up  the  papers.  After  the  trans- 
fer had  been  all  legally  made,  Mr.  Randolph  turned  on  Mr. 
Read  and  upbraided  him  sharply  for  selling  the  graves  of  his 
ancestors.  Mr.  Bedford  was  present,  and  he  said  that  it 
seemed  to  him  a  very  unwarranted  incivility.  It  is  well  to 
remember  that  John  Randolph  was  passing  through  Prince 
Edward  Court  House  or  the  village  of  Hampden  Sidney  any 
time  during  nearly  thirty  years  of  the  period  covered  by  this 
book. 

Samuel  Harrington  Gordon 

b.  1797,  d.  1852.  Son  of  Nathaniel  Gordon  of  Gordonsville, 
Orange  County,  and  grandson  of  Col.  James  Gordon  of  Lan- 
caster County.  Samuel  H.  Gordon  studied  medicine,  prac- 
ticed for  a  time  at  Newbern  in  what  is  now  Pulaski  County, 


198  [1817 

and  then  about  1836  went  out  to  Missouri,  settling  first  at 
Danville  and  in  1846  removing  to  St.  Louis,  where  he  remained 
until  his  death. 

Gordons  in  Virginia,  by  A.  C.  Gordon,  p.  52. 

John  Irvine 

John  and  Edmund  Irvine  were  members  of  the  Philan- 
thropic Society  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1817.  It  is 
likely  they  both  came  to  college  from  Bedford  County.  Ed- 
mund Irvine  apparently  made  his  home  at  Milton,  North 
Carolina,  and  possibly  it  was  his  son  and  grandson  that  were 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  1856  and  1892.  Samuel  R.  Irvine,  of 
Lynchburg,  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1822 ; 
Robert  Irvine  of  Bedford  County,  1823-1825 ;  and  James 
Irvine  of  Bedford,  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1828, 
having  come  to  college  in  1824.  '  Among  the  early  settlers  of 
Bedford  County  were  three  brothers,  David,  Christopher,  and 
William  Irvine,  who  are  said  to  have  come  originally  from 
Ireland.  Of  their  sons,  several  removed  to  Kentucky  along 
with  their  relations,  the  McDowells.  General  Irvine  McDowell 
of  the  United  States  army  was  of  this  connection.' 

Brown,  p.   369. 

Green,  Some  Historic  Families  of  Kentucky,  75. 


Could  the  late  Alexander  Brown  have  given  six  months  of  his  time  to 
making  a  catalogue  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  before  1830,  the  work 
would  have  stood  for  a  long  time. 

John  Campbell  Morton 

b.  1795.  Son  of  Captain  Hezekiah  Morton  of  Prince  Ed- 
ward County.  A  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  from 
1812  apparently  as  late  as  1817.  Very  active  in  the  affairs 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society.  Lived  beyond  middle  age.  Lost 
his  mind  some  years  before  his  death. 


1817]  199 

Thomas  Shelton 

Born  about  1800  in  Louisa  County.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney  1816.  M.  D.  in  Philadelphia.  Excellent  physician, 
Louisa  County.  Never  married.  Died  just  before  the  Civil 
war. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  H.  Venable 

b.  Feb.  22,  1798,  d.  Aug.  12,  1856.  Son  of  Richard  N. 
Venable  of  Prince  Edward  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, 1816.  Merchant  and  farmer,  living  for  most  of  his  life 
at  Prince  Edward  Court  House.  Mr.  Venable  died  at  a  farm 
he  had  purchased  near  Hampden  Sidney,  called  "Hickory 
Grove."  He  was  an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian  church  and 
thoroughly  of  the  New  School  party.  He  was  a  man  of  large 
business  and  very  methodical. 

James  Wickham 

At  Hampden  Sidney  College  around  1816.  Probably  an 
uncle  of  Williams  C.  Wickham  of  Hanover  County  (1820- 
1888),  general  in  the  Confederate  army,  president  of  the 
Virginia  Central  [Chesapeake  and  Ohio]  Railway,  &c.  James 
Wickham  was  a  member  of  the  Philanthropic  Society  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College.  An  approximate  list  of  members 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society  around  1816  will  bear  out  the 
statement  that  at  that  time,  in  contrast  to  the  Union  Society, 
the  personnel  of  the  Philanthropic  Society  was  very  little 
theological:  viz. — Edward  Dillon,  Clement  Read,  Jesse  H. 
Patillo,  William  H.  McFarland,  John  Flood  Edmunds,  Abram 
W.  Venable,  William  Dunbar,  Thomas  P.  Hoge,  George 
Wright,  Joseph  Royall,  Peter  Hales,  William  I.  B.  Bedford, 
John  Clapper,  Thomas  E.  Watkins,  William  Linn,  John  Ligon, 
Nathaniel  Moorman,  Thomas  Perkinson,  George  M.  Y.  Miller, 
Thomas  E.  Read,  Henry  E.  Scott,  Paul  Carrington,  Harvey 
Mitchell,   Peter   Guerrant,   James   Wickham,   James   Dillon, 


200  [1817 

Thomas  Shelton,  John  Woodson,  Samuel  K.  Rice,  Edmund 
Irvine,  John  Irvine,  Edward  O.  Friend,  John  C.  Morton, 
Harrington  Gordon,  Archibald  Carter,  William  H.  Elliott, 
Thomas  G.  Coleman,  John  B.  Clauselle,  &c.  The  Union  So- 
ciety was  substantially  of  the  church;  the  Philanthropic  So- 
ciety was  of  the  world.  But  of  course  there  is  no  such  abso- 
lute line  to  be  drawn,  as  some  people  say  in  Ireland  today. 


1818 


Robert  N.  Anderson 

b.  Cumberland  County;  student,  Hampden  Sidney  College 
about  1818;  licensed  by  Hanover  Presbytery,  1819;  never 
held  a  pastoral  charge ;  lived  in  retirement  many  years  before 
his  death.     Died  in  1872. 

Union  Seminary  Catalogue. 


Bobert  N.  Anderson  was  at  Hampden  Sidney  as  early  as  1813  (Union 
Society  Minutes).  He  was  one  of  the  organizers  in  1818  of  the  Society 
of  Inquiry  on  the  Subject  of  Missions. 

John  Nicholson  Campbell 

Born  in  Philadelphia,  March  4th,  1798.  A  student  at  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania  and  for  a  time  teacher  of  the 
languages  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  [no  doubt  studying 
theology  under  Dr.  Hoge].  Was  licensed  to  preach  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Hanover,  May,  1817,  and  preached  for  awhile 
in  Petersburg,  Va.,  and  in  Newberne,  North  Carolina.  In 
Newberne  he  was  instrumental  in  establishing  a  church. 
Chosen  chaplain  to  Congress  in  1820,  he  discharged  the  duties 
of  the  office  with  unusual  acceptability.  In  1823  he  became 
assistant  to  the  venerable  Dr.  Balch  of  Georgetown,  and  in 
1828  took  charge  of  the  New  York  Avenue  Church  in  Wash- 
ington. There  was  trouble  in  the  congregation  about  1829, 
on  account  of  the  Cabinet  controversy.  President  Jackson 
gave  up  his  pew  in  the  church,  and  Mr.  Campbell  resigned. 
In  January,  1825,  he  was  elected  one  of  the  managers  of  the 
American  Colonization  Society,  and  discharged  the  duties  of 
the  office  most  efficiently  for  about  six  years.  Dr.  Campbell 
died  March  27th,  1864.  His  character,  both  intellectual  and 
moral,  was  strongly  marked.  His  mind  was  uncommonly  ver- 
satile, with  a  firmness  that  never  yielded  in  essentials.     His 


202  [1818 

remarkable  executive  power,  in  connection  with  his  great 
familiarity  with  ecclesiastical  rule,  gave  him  a  decided  in- 
fluence in  the  councils  of  his  church,  so  far  as  he  mingled 
with  them. 

Nevin,  Presbyterian  Encyclopaedia. 

John  McKee  Erwin 

b.  1789,  d.  1840.  A  native  of  Mecklenburg  County,  North 
Carolina;  prepared  for  college  at  John  Makemie  Wilson's 
Cabarrus  County  School,  John  M.  Erwin  graduated  at  Athens 
College  (University  of  Georgia)  in  1816.  He  was  then  at 
Hampden  Sidney  for  theology  under  Dr.  Hoge,  was  licensed 
to  preach  by  Hanover  Presbytery  in  1818,  was  for  eighteen 
years  pastor  of  churches  in  North  and  South  Carolina  (Con- 
cord, N.  C,  1821-1828;  Williamsburg,  S.  C,  1828-1834),  and 
then  going  out  to  Arkansas  in  1839,  he  died  there  the  next 
year. 

Charles  W.  Friend 

Born  in  Chesterfield  County,  June  28,  1801.  Entered 
Hampdem  Sidney  1817.  Farmer  and  local  preacher  (Meth- 
odist).   Died  in  Chesterfield  County,  June  15,  1874. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Glover  D.  Gilliam 

Dr.  Gilliam  (M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsylvania,  1823), 
practiced  in  Buckingham,  Cumberland  and  Prince  Edward 
counties.     His  home  was  in  Buckingham  County. 

John  Newton  Gordon 

b.  1793,  d.  1870.  Son  of  Nathaniel  Gordon  of  Orange 
County.  In  1818,  John  N.  Gordon  was  a  member  of  the 
Society  of  Inquiry  on  Missions  established  by  the  theological 
students  of  the  Synod's  school  at  Hampden  Sidney.     He  left 


1818]  203 

college  on  account  of  bad  health.  Mr.  Gordon  spent  his  life 
mainly  in  Richmond,  as  a  merchant.  He  was  an  elder  in 
John  Holt  Rice's  church  at  Richmond.  For  a  time  he  was  a 
farmer  in  New  Kent  County. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

James  Henry  Cosden  Leach 

Born  in  Stafford  County,  July  15,  1791;  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College  1815-1818,  carrying  on  college  studies  and 
studies  in  theology  •  pastor  of  Presbyterian  Church  at  Gerards- 
town,  [West]  Virginia,  1819-1824;  then  settled  in  Cumber- 
land County,  for  a  few  years  without  any  definite  pastoral 
work ;  from  1843  to  1860,  pastor  of  Cumberland  Church,  New 
School;  died  Sept.  4th,  1866  at  his  home  in  Cumberland 
County.  Dr.  Leach  was  a  man  of  marked  character,  both  as 
a  minister  and  as  a  business  organizer.  He  was  an  excellent 
farmer,  and  was  the  owner  of  a  large  farm  in  Cumberland 
County,  a  mile  or  two  from  the  Prince  Edward  line.  For  a 
time  he  was  president  of  the  Farmers'  Bank  at  Farmville. 
Dr.  Leach  was  for  some  years  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Union  Seminary,  and  as  secretary  of  the  Board  in  1830  he 
framed  a  courteous  refusal  on  the  part  of  his  Board  to  sell 
the  Seminary  property  to  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College.  This  offer  to  purchase  in  1830,  and  the  care- 
ful consideration  of  the  offer,  form  one  of  the  problems  in  the 
history  of  the  village. 

George  H.  Matthews 

A  contributor  to  Johnston's  Old  Virginia  Clerks,  speaking 
of  the  Buckingham  bar  in  1846,  said:  "It  was  the  first  day 
of  the  Circuit  Court,  April  5th.  The  docket  was  very  large 
and  the  cases  important.  Judge  Daniel  A.  Wilson  was  pre- 
siding. In  turning  to  the  bar  the  eye  rested  upon  Sterling 
Claiborne  of  Nelson;  Joseph  K.  Irving  of  Amherst;  Charles 
L.  Mosby  of  Lynchburg;  Thomas  S.  Bocoek  of  Appomattox; 
Wm.   Cabell  Flournoy,   Stephen   0.   Southell,   and  John   T. 


204  [1818 

Thornton  of  Prince  Edward;  Willis  Wilson,  and  Francis  D. 
Irving  of  Cumberland;  George  H.  Matthews  and  Joseph 
Fuqua  of  Buckingham."  It  has  recently  been  established 
that  Judge  Wilson  was  an  alumnus  of  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege. All  the  others  mentioned  were  alumni  of  the  college, 
a  pretty  strong  association.  Thomas  S.  Bocock  and  Judge 
F.  D.  Irving  were  living  in  1888.  The  others  were  dead.  Mr. 
Matthews,  it  is  likely,  lived  in  Buckingham  County.  He  was 
a  member  of  the  Philanthropic  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney, 
and  is  assigned  to  Cumberland  County  on  the  catalogue  of 
that  society.  Geo.  H.  Matthews  was  a  son-in-law  of  Thomas 
Miller  of  Powhatan,  an  interested  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College.  Moses  P.  Handy,  so  conspicuous  in  the  man- 
agement of  the  Chicago  World's  Fair,  married  a  daughter 
of  Mr.  Matthews. 

Joseph  Nimmo 

b.  near  Norfolk,  1798 ;  d.  1865.  At  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege around  1818.  In  January  of  that  year  a  member  of  the 
Society  of  Inquiry  on  the  Subject  of  Missions.  Entered 
Princeton  Seminary  in  1822,  and  took  the  three  years'  course. 
Mr.  Nimmo  was  a  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  church  in 
Virginia  for  a  year  or  two,  but  spent  most  of  his  life  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  especially  on  Long  Island,  as  pastor  and 
as  teacher.    He  died  at  Huntington,  Long  Island. 

Princeton  Seminary  Catalogue. 

James  Nimmo,  died  1833,  was  a  very  able  lawyer  at  Norfolk 
(Grigsby's  Tazewell,  29-31).  In  1818,  John  Owen  of  Norfolk 
County,  a  relation  of  the  Keelings  and  the  Nimmos  of  that 
county,  set  out  for  Alabama. 

His  journal  runs — "Nov.  2,  1818,  started  20  minutes  before 
9,  roads  tolerable — got  to  Prince  Edward,  and  encamped  nigh 
Miller's  Tavern  at  a  good  place — all  well — wind  to  south  and 
warm. 


1818]  205 

Nov.  3.  Passed  Prince  Edward  C.  H.,  and  at  night  camped 
at  Buffalo  River,  2  miles  above  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
where  J.  Nimmo  came  in  and  tarried  all  night  with  us." 

Southern  Hist.  Association  Publications,  Vol.  I,  89-92. 

James  Wharey 

b.  1789,  d.  1842.  His  parents,  Thomas  and  Letitia  (Denney) 
Wharey,  were  residents  of  Rutherford  County,  North  Caro- 
lina. James  Wharey  was  taught  at  home  by  a  clergyman  who 
lived  in  his  father's  house  for  awhile,  and  then  by  the  Rev. 
Joseph  D.  Kilpatrick  of  Iredell  County.  He  began  his  studies 
after  he  had  reached  his  twenty-first  year.  About  1813,  he 
came  to  Hampden  Sidney  for  work  in  theology  under  Dr. 
Hoge,  and  maintained  himself  at  college  by  teaching  several 
children  in  the  family  of  the  steward.  He  was  perhaps  Tutor 
in  the  college  towards  1818.  He  must  have  been  at  Hampden 
Sidney  at  least  five  years,  and  no  doubt  brought  James  H. 
Brookes  to  the  college.  Early  in  1818  James  Wharey  was 
vice-president  of  the  Society  for  Inquiry  on  the  Subject  of 
Missions.  In  the  autumn  of  that  year  he  settled  as  teacher 
and  preacher  at  New  Glasgow,  Amherst  County.  His  chief 
supporter  there  was  Dr.  James  Brown,  a  brother  of  Thomas 
Brown,  the  Scotch  metaphysician.  Having  married  a  daugh- 
ter of  Major  James  Morton  of  Prince  Edward  County,  Mr. 
Wharey  spent  some  time  about  1820  at  the  home  of  his  father- 
in-law,  and  during  1821  was  chaplain  to  the  college  and  pastor 
of  the  college  church.  For  eighteen  years  until  his  death,  he 
was  pastor  of  churches  in  Goochland  County.  Mr.  Wharey 
was  the  author  [1840]  of  a  manual  of  church  history  long 
used  as  a  text  book  at  Union  Seminary.  His  sons,  Thomas 
and  James  Morton  Wharey  were  graduates  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  and  well-known  ministers  of  the  Presbyterian 
church. 

Sprague  IV,  601-604. 


18X9 


"Extract  of  a  letter  from  the  Rev.  Pliny  Fisk,  dated  Virginia,  June 
21,  1819 — Yesterday  we  kept  Sabbath  with  the  venerable  Dr.  Hoge,  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College.  This  institution,  though  perhaps  but  little 
known,  is  still  a  highly  interesting  one.  Fifteen  or  sixteen  years  ago, 
the  Hanover  Presbytery  founded  a  Theological  Seminary  in  connexion 
with  it.  For  several  years  this  has  been  under  the  care  and  patronage 
of  the  Synod  of  Virginia.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Hoge,  the  present  worthy  and 
able  President,  has  been  at  the  head  of  the  establishment  about  twelve 
years,  during  which  time  about  thirty  young  men  have  finished  their 
literary  and  theological  studies,  and  entered  the  ministry.  Nearly  all 
these  are  now  alive.  Many  others  have  received  a  literary  education. 
The  present  number  of  students  is  between  forty  and  fifty,  [63  that  year] 
more  than  twenty  [?]  of  whom  are  preparing  for  the  ministry.  These 
students  have  a  Theological  Society  for  their  improvement  in  Divine 
Knowledge.  There  is  also  in  the  college  a  Society  of  Inquiry  on  Missions, 
consisting  of  ten  or  twelve  members,  who  meet  frequently  to  discuss 
missionary  questions.  Dr.  Hoge  is  now  assisted  in  his  labours  by  Mr. 
Morgan,  from  the  Theological  Seminary  at  Princeton,  and  Mr.  Cushing 
from  Dartmouth  College." 

See  Dr.  Rice's  Literary  and  Evangelical  Magazine,  vol.  II,  p.  389. 
Mr.  Fisk,  the  writer  of  this  letter,  sailed  from  Boston  for  Smyrna,  early 
in  November  following.  He  went  out  as  a  missionary,  and  died  at  Beirut 
in  1825.  He  was  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  had  fitted  himself  to 
preach  in  Italian,  French,  Greek  and  Arabic. 


John  0.  Baker 

Perhaps  a  brother  of  Daniel  Baker.  At  Hampden  Sidney 
as  early  as  1814,  and  as  late  as  1818,  in  January,  1818,  being 
one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Society  of  Inquiry  on  the  Subject 
of  Missions.  Daniel  Baker  says:  "About  this  time  [fall  of 
1816],  with  my  brother  John — leaving  my  wife  with  her 
mother  in  Prince   Edward  County — I   paid   a  visit  to  my 

friends  and  relatives  in  Liberty  County,  Georgia 

Leaving  Liberty  County,  still  in  company  with  my  brother 
John,  I  returned  to  Prince  Edward.  During  my  absence  in 
Georgia,  a  letter  had  been  sent  to  me  at  Prince  Edward,  in- 
viting me  to  become  Seamen's  preacher  in  the  city  of  New 
York." 

Autobiography  of  Daniel  Baker,  p.  95,  p.  97. 


1819]  207 

Dr.  Baker  and  his  brother  John  apparently  made  this 
journey  to  Georgia  in  October,  1816,  the  fall  vacation  month. 

Peter  Randolph  Bland 

Peter  Randolph  Bland  of  Amelia  County,  died  in  1784, 
leaving  two  sons,  Richard  and  Peter  [Amelia  County  records] . 
Peter  Randolph  Bland,  the  son  of  Richard  Bland,  was  born 
in  Nottoway  County,  Dec.  9,  1800.  His  early  education  was 
carefully  attended  to,  and  he  graduated  with  honor  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  Several  of  his  family  were  members  of 
the  bar  and  he  was  thus  prompted  to  study  law.  He  became 
a  member  of  the  legal  profession,  and  was  successful,  especi- 
ally in  criminal  cases.  In  1825  he  joined  the  Presbyterian 
church  in  Nottoway,  and  was  ordained  an  elder.  In  1829  he 
removed  to  Fayette  County,  Tennessee,  and  settled  in  the 
place  where  he  died.  Shortly  after  his  removal  he  began  the 
study  of  theology  with  his  pastor,  and  was  licensed  as  a  min- 
ister in  April,  1831.  His  work  was  that  of  a  missionary  in 
his  neighborhood,  organizing  churches.  For  some  time  he  was 
chairman  of  the  Education  Committee  of  Western  District 
Presbytery.     He  died  July  24,  1859. 

Presbyterian  Historical  Almanac:   1861,  p.  79. 

James  Hall  Brookes 

b.  1794,  d.  1833.  Son  of  John  Ward  Brookes  of  Iredell 
County,  North  Carolina.  John  Ward  Brookes  was  a  Metho- 
dist. His  wife,  Margaret  Houston,  was  a  Presbyterian,  born 
in  Scotland.  In  January,  1818,  James  H.  Brookes  was  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  doubtless  chiefly  for  work  in  the- 
ology under  Dr.  Hoge.  January,  1818,  Mr.  Brookes  was 
chosen  treasurer  of  the  Society  of  Inquiry  on  the  Subject  of 
Missions,  a  society  established  at  that  time  by  "the  theological 
students  of  the  Synod's  School  at  Hampden  Sidney."  In 
1824  Mr.  Brookes  was  clerk  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover. 
He  was  then  perhaps  living  in  Fluvanna  County,  where  his 
two  oldest  children  were  born.     Shortly  before  1830  he  re- 


208  [1819 

moved  to  Pulaski,  Tennessee,  to  take  charge  of  a  flourishing 
Presbyterian  congregation.  In  1831  he  went  to  Cincinnati  to 
build  up  a  new  church  there,  but  returned  to  Pulaski,  and 
died  of  cholera  in  June,  1833.  James  H.  Brookes,  D.  D.,  of 
St.  Louis,  was  his  youngest  son.  While  living  in  Virginia, 
Mr.  Brookes  had  married  a  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Drury  Lacy. 
Senator  Spencer  of  Missouri,  married  a  granddaughter  of  Mr. 
Brookes. 

Williams,  Life  of  James  H.  Brookes   [Jr.].     St.  Louis,  1897. 
Ms.  record  of  J.  Brookes  Smith,  some  time  Professor  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College. 

Richard  Kenner  Cralle 

Son  of  Richard  K.  Cralle  of  Lunenburg  County.  Richard 
K.  Cralle,  Jr.,  was  private  secretary  for  a  time  to  John  C. 
Calhoun,  and  was  Calhoun's  literary  executor.  It  is  said  that 
he  was  a  relation  of  Mr.  Calhoun.  He  brought  out  the  "Life 
and  Works  of  Calhoun,"  New  York,  1853-55.  Six  volumes. 
Richard  K.  Cralle  was  for  awhile  a  journalist  in  Washington, 
D.  C.  (editor  of  the  Washington  Telegraph,  and  in  1844  chief 
clerk  of  the  State  Department),  and  a  Swedenborgian  teacher 
or  clergyman.  He  was  the  author  of  some  New  Church  pub- 
lications. It  is  supposed  that  Nathaniel  F.  Cabell  became  a 
Swedenborgian  through  Mr.  Cralle 's  influence.  They  were 
connections  by  marriage.  Richard  K.  Cralle  died  in  Virginia, 
June  10,  1864.  He  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about 
1819  and  at  William  and  Mary,  1820. 

Brown,  Cabells,  &e.,  p.  544. 
Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

James  Garland  Hamner 

b.  1798,  d.  1887.  Son  of  Samuel  Hamner  of  Albemarle 
County,  who  about  1800  settled  in  Charlotte  County.  Jan- 
uary, 1818,  James  G.  Hamner  was  a  member  of  the  Society 
of  Inquiry  on  the  Subject  of  Missions,  made  up  of  the  the- 
ological students  of  the  Synod's  School  at  Hampden  Sidney. 


1819]  209 

1820-1823  he  was  a  student  at  Princeton  Seminary.  For  two 
years  after  1824  he  was  pastor  of  Old  Pole  Green  Church 
(a  famous  church)  in  Hanover  County.  He  was  then  for 
three  years  in  Fayetteville,  North  Carolina.  From  1830  to 
1852,  Dr.  Hamner  was  in  Maryland,  for  most  of  that  time 
pastor  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Baltimore. 
Pastor  of  a  church  at  New  Haven,  Connecticut  from  1855  to 
1860,  and  then  pastor  of  the  Park  Street  Church,  Newark, 
New  Jersey,  until  the  outbreak  of  the  war.  Dr.  Hamner  was 
not  again  pastor  of  any  church,  but  spent  his  time  for  many 
years  as  an  evangelist  in  Maryland  and  Virginia.  The  Rev. 
Dr.  James  G.  Hamner  of  Delaware,  Pennsylvania,  Maryland 
and  West  Virginia  (Parkersburg),  was  his  son. 

Henry  N.  Pharr 

On  a  list  of  names  (Union  Society  Minutes,  II,  249)  Henry 
N.  Pharr  is  written  down  with  the  title  A.  B.  He  had  been 
prepared  for  college  at  John  Makemie  Wilson's  School  in 
Cabarrus  County,  North  Carolina.  Henry  N.  Pharr  was  a 
native  of  that  county.  He  was  for  about  twenty  years  pastor 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Concord,  North  Carolina ;  then 
for  six  years  until  1860,  a  minister  in  Alabama.  Mr.  Pharr 
died  in  1862,  in  North  Carolina.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Davidson  College  from  1838  to  1850. 

James  B.  Stafford 

A  native  of  Cabarrus  County,  North  Carolina  and  prepared 
for  college  at  John  Makemie  Wilson's  School.  He  was  one  of 
Dr.  Hoge's  theological  students  at  Hampden  Sidney,  but  was 
a  student  at  the  college  perhaps  four  years.  Settling  in 
Mississippi  in  1836,  he  died  there,  at  Danville,  in  1860.  Union 
Seminary  Catalogue  lists  James  Stafford  as  a  graduate  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  1818.  Graduates  of  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, as  of  Washington  and  Lee,  are  traceable  with  difficulty 
from  1815  to  1819.  There  were  certainly  very  few  during 
that  period  at  either  institution. 


1820 


Edward  A.  Cabell 

b.  1797,  d.  1869.  Son  of  Col.  William  Cabell,  Jr.,  of  'Union 
Hill,'  Nelson  County.  Educated  at  William  and  Mary  [and 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  about  1820].  Studied  law  under  Judge 
Tucker,  but  never  practiced.  Settled  on  a  large  estate  left 
him  by  his  father,  in  Amherst  County.  Vestryman  of  Lex- 
ington Parish  for  many  years  after  1824.  Member  of  the 
Virginia  legislature  1837-40.  In  1841  appointed  by  President 
Tyler  to  a  position  in  the  General  Land  Office  at  Washington. 
Chief  Clerk  of  the  Land  Office  for  some  years  before  1861. 
'His  office  brought  him  much  in  contact  with  members  of 
Congress  from  the  west,  among  whom  was  Mr.  Lincoln,  to 
whom  he  became  much  attached,  and  of  whom  he  always  spoke 
with  much  respect.  When  Mr.  Lincoln  became  President,  he 
asked  Mr.  Cabell  to  remain  in  his  federal  office,  but  he  did 
not  think  he  could  conscientiously  do  so.  He  returned  to 
Virginia  to  share  the  fortunes  of  the  State  in  the  impending 
war.'  He  died  at  'Norwood,'  the  residence  of  his  nephew 
in  Amherst  County. 

Brown,  p.   379. 

Peter  G.  Camden 

Judge  Taylor's  Needham  Law  School  in  Cumberland 
County,  a  short  distance  from  Farmville  was  active  about  a 
hundred  years  ago.  In  1822  Judge  Taylor  published  a 
"Journal  of  the  Law  School  and  of  the  Moot-Court  attached 
to  it,  at  Needham  in  Virginia."  8vo.  pp.  371.  In  his  Preface 
dated  January  7th,  1821,  Judge  Taylor  [at  the  time  Judge  of 
the  Superior  Courts  of  Chancery  for  the  Richmond  and  Lynch- 
burg Districts],  after  describing  the  commonsense  method 
of  his  school,  gave  some  idea  of  the  site  and  the  accessibility. 
He  said :  ' '  Needham  is  in  a  very  elevated  and  healthy  country, 


1820]  211 

on  the  road  leading  from  the  city  of  Washington,  crossing 
James  River  at  Cartersville,  and  Appomattox  at  Farmville, 
to  Milledgeville  in  the  State  of  Georgia,  within  three  miles 
and  a  half  of  Raine  's  Tavern  on  the  stage  road  from  Rich- 
mond to  Lynchburg.  The  school  will  be  limited  to  fifteen 
students,  until  Farmville,  a  little  village  now  rising  into  com- 
mercial notice,  can  afford  all  the  necessary  and  convenient 
accommodations  for  the  students  and  the  court;  and  when 
this  shall  be  the  case,  the  court  will  be  held  in  that  place." 
Needham  was  the  name  of  the  farm.  Peter  G[uerrant]  Cam- 
den of  Amherst  County  is  listed  as  a  student  at  this  school 
year  1821.  On  the  Philanthropic  Society  Catalogue  of  1850 
he  is  set  down  as  of  Richmond.  "William  Camden  came  to 
Amherst  about  1761,  and  settled  at  a  place  he  called  'Green- 
way.'  He  was  in  some  way  connected  with  the  Fairfaxes  of 
Greenway  Court." 

Brown,  386. 


And  see  Seharf,  History  of  St.  Louis  (1883)  vol.  I,  biographical 
sketch  of  Mayor  Camden: — Peter  G.  Camden,  b.  Amherst  County,  Vir- 
ginia, 1801.  His  father,  William  Camden,  and  his  mother,  both  dying 
early,  was  adopted  by  an  uncle.  Studied  law  under  Chancellor  Taylor, 
in  Cumberland  County,  and  in  1827  removed  to  Missouri.  Becoming 
interested  in  the  Sante  Fe  trade,  he  determined  to  settle  in  New  Mexico, 
had  made  every  preparation,  but  fell  ill  at  Franklin,  and  abandoned  the 
plan.  He  returned  to  Virginia,  wound  up  his  affairs,  and  went  to  Ken- 
tucky. He  had  an  uncle  living  in  Lincoln  County.  Practicing  law  with 
success  in  Lincoln  County  in  1830  he  married  his  cousin,  Anna  Camden, 
and  in  1837  removed  to  St.  Louis  with  two  brothers  of  his  wife.  He  gave 
up  the  law  and  established  the  dry  goods  firm  of  J.  B.  and  M.  Camden 
&  Co.,  of  which  he  became  the  sole  owner  in  1840.  In  1843  he  went  into 
the  provision  business  and  in  1858  became  a  general  commission  mer- 
chant. In  1846  he  was  elected  mayor  of  St.  Louis  by  the  Old  American 
or  Know  Nothing  party  and  served  one  term.  Mayor  Camden  was  living 
in  1866,  at  which  time  he  was  a  member  of  the  Missouri  Historical  So- 
ciety.    He  was  a  Baptist  in  religion. 

We  should  be  glad  to  have  some  descendant  of  Mayor  Camden  say  in 
so  many  words  that  he  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College. 

John  B.  Clauselle 

Clausel  Clausel,  a  justice  of  Mecklenburg  County,  died  in 
1801.    There  was  early  a  sprinkling  of  French  names  in  Meek- 


212  [1820 

lenburg  County.  John  B.  Clauselle,  a  graduate  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College  1820,  may  have  been  a  son  of  Alexander  or 
of  Joseph  B.  Clausel,  sons  of  Clausel  Clausel.  It  is  possible 
that  John  B.  Clauselle  settled  in  West  Tennessee. 

Thomas  Davis 

August  25,  1820,  honorary  membership  was  conferred  by 
the  Union  Society  on  Thomas  Davis, '  about  to  leave  this  place. ' 
Thomas  Davis  is  listed  A.  B.  on  the  earliest  general  catalogue 
of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Apparently  he  was  a  Presby- 
terian minister,  coming  to  Hampden  Sidney  after  preparation 
at  John  M.  Wilson's  school  in  Cabarrus  County,  North  Car- 
olina. Dr.  Foote  in  his  Sketches  of  North  Carolina,  p.  485, 
enumerates  certain  pupils  of  Dr.  Wilson's  who  were  ministers. 
Among  them  are  these  names,  taken  to  be  those  of  students, 
theological  or  lay,  at  Hampden  Sidney  College: — John  Silli- 
man,  John  M.  Erwin,  James  B.  Stafford,  Thomas  Davis,  Cyrus 
Johnston,  Henry  N.  Pharr,  William  B.  Davies,  Dion  C.  Pharr. 
And  we  will  add  by  guess,  Isaac  Burns  (A.  B.,  1812)  and 
Midas  McKinley  (1815).  That  is  to  say,  Cabarrus  County, 
of  all  the  counties  of  North  Carolina,  by  reason  of  John 
Makemie  Wilson,  gave  the  most  support  to  Hampden  Sidney 
College  before  1825.  And  if  not  Cabarrus,  then  Mecklenburg, 
of  which  Cabarrus  was  but  a  district.  Dr.  Hoge's  theological 
seminary  was  already  a  Union  Seminary:  its  support  in  per- 
sonnel came  if  anything  more  from  North  Carolina  than  from 
Virginia. 

William  Hamner 

Very  likely  a  son  of  William  Hamner  of  Albemarle  County, 
and  cousin  of  James  Garland  Hamner.  Lawyer.  Died  at 
Baltimore,  Md.,  Oct.,  1859. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Woods,  History  of  Albemarle  County. 


1820]  213 

Josiah  Harris 

Jesse  Armistead,  secretary  of  the  Literary  and  Philosophical 
Society  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  recorded  in  his  excellent 
manner  the  minutes  of  that  society,  meeting  January  6,  1826 : 
'  '  On  motion  resolved  that  the  society  cease  to  subscribe  for  the 
following  periodicals:  Eclectic  Review,^  Literary  Gazette, 
Westminster  Review,  the  Albion,  the  National  Gazette,  Brew- 
ster's Journal,  the  Annals  of  Philosophy  or  Philosophical 
Magazine.  Mr.  Armistead,  not  being  prepared  to  read  a  dis- 
sertation, was  indulged  until  the  next  meeting.  He  is  at  that 
time  to  read  one  on  the  best  and  safest  means  of  removing 
slavery  from  the  Southern  country.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Josiah 
Harris,  a  member  of  this  society  from  South  Carolina,  being 
present  presented  to  the  society  a  copy  of  the  "Encyclo- 
paedia" published  at  Yorkville,  S.  C.  On  motion,  resolved 
that  the  thanks  of  the  society  be  presented  to  the  proprietors 
of  that  work."     [Apparently  this  was  a  magazine.] 

Josiah  Harris,  who  had  entered  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1817  and  graduated  in  1820  [first  honor,  graduating  speech 
"on  the  unremitted  cultivation  of  literature"],  was  very 
likely  one  of  the  first  movers  in  the  business  of  establishing 
a  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden  Sidney.  Minutes  of 
the  society  (Jan.  16,  1824),  set  going  in  1824,  show  that 
previously  to  the  organization  of  this  society  a  scheme  had 
been  proposed  for  the  establishment  of  an  Athenaeum  or  Read- 
ing Room  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  And  further,  Minutes 
of  Jan.  30,  1824,  read : — ' '  Resolved  that  all  those  individuals 
who  were  considered  members  of  the  society  which  it  was 
resolved  to  institute  on  the  28th  day  of  September,  1821,  be 
considered  as  members  of  this  society.  The  following  is  a 
list  of  their  names,  as  appears  from  a  record  made  at  the  date 
above  specified,  and  also  from  another  made  of  Sept.  27,  1822, 
with  the  exception  of  those  who  have  signed  the  annexed 
constitution:  Jacob  T.  B.  Skillman,  Josiah  Harris,  Hugh 
Caldwell,  Daniel  A.  Penick,  William  W.  Oliver,  Henry  N. 


214  [1820 

Pharr,  Cyrus  Johnston,  Nelson  Page,  Edward  L.  Scruggs, 
Jesse  B.  Harrison,  the  Rev.  Joseph  D.  Kilpatrick,  Thomas 
Miller,  Esq.  of  Powhatan,  Henry  E.  Watkins,  Esq.,  Silas 
Bigelow,  Sherwin  McRae,  William  H.  Pollard,  Rufus  H. 
Kilpatrick,  William  N.  Page,  James  G.  Spears,  Isaac  Cochran, 
Andrew  Hunter,  and  Drury  Lacy."  But  a  year  before  that, 
there  was  in  existence  a  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College.  It  was  an  organizing  time  in  the  community 
and  some  of  the  organizations  made  some  effort  to  work  to- 
gether harmoniously.  "On  Wednesday,  the  21st  of  June, 
1820,  the  delegates  from  the  several  debating  societies  of 
Hampden  Sidney  [a  Symphonic  Society  was  also  mentioned 
in  the  proceedings]  convened  to  negotiate  on  the  affairs  of 
their  mission.  The  Philanthropic  Society  was  represented 
by  John  B.  Clauselle  and  Isaac  Cochran,  the  Union  Society 
by  Daniel  A.  Penick,  the  Theological  Society  by  Hugh  Cald- 
well, and  the  Philosophical  Society  by  Josiah  Harris.  The 
several  delegates  formed  themselves  into  a  committee  of 
negotiation."  [See  minutes  of  both  Literary  societies.]  They 
were  to  deliberate  on  place  and  time  of  their  several  meetings ; 
chairs,  candlesticks,  sand  boxes,  and  other  furniture  for  their 
meeting  place.     Apparently  they  never  could  agree. 

This  is  the  record  of  Josiah  Harris,  as  preserved  locally, 
and  there  is  no  other  item  to  be  had  elsewhere  at  this  time. 
It  is  not  unlikely  that  he  was  the  Mr.  Harris  whom  the  Board 
of  Trustees  of  the  college  thanked,  Sept.  27,  1821,  for  his  year 
(just  ended)  of  'laborious  exertions  in  the  service  of  the 
college'  as  Preceptor  of  the  grammar  school. 

Nota:  Further  search  locally  is  not  only  corroborative  of  what  ap- 
pears above,  but  shoves  the  record  back  another  year.  The  ninth  and 
last  item  on  a  manuscript  programme  of  Commencement  exercises  at 
Hampden  Sidney,  Sept.  29,  1819  is — "An  oration  on  Literary  Prospects 
in  the  United  States,  by  Josiah  Harris :  elected  by  the  Philosophical 
Society. ' ' 

It  appears,  on  reference  to  Dr.  Howe's  History,  that  at  the  organiza- 
tion of  Bethel  Presbytery,  South  Carolina,  Josiah  Harris  was  pastor  of 
Ebenezer  and  Unity  churches.  In  1827  his  connection  with  those  churches 
was  ended;  "he  withdrew  from  the  Presbyterian  church,  possibly  to  join 
the  Associate  Eef ormed  Church. 7 '  Dr.  Howe  speaks  of  Mr.  Harris 's 
"fine  reputation  as  a  teacher, "  but  gives  no  facts  beyond  the  year  1827. 
Josiah  Harris  was  plainly  an  influential  man  at  Hampden  Sidney. 


1820]  215 

Robert  Macon 

A  list  appearing  on  Union  Society  Minutes,  under  date 
Nov.  9,  1821  (vol.  II,  p.  246)  shows  "Robert  Macon,  A.  B., 
Powhatan. ' '  Other  items  of  this  list  are  :  ' '  Thomas  Miller, 
A.  B.,  Powhatan;"  "John  Miller,  A.  B.,  Cumberland;" 
"Jesse  B.  Harrison,  A.  B.,  Lynchburg;"  "Nelson  Page,  A. 
B.,  Cumberland;"  "Cyrus  Johnston,  A.  B.,  Cabarrus,  N.  C." 

It  is  difficult  to  understand  this  list  wholly.  John  Miller 
may  be  the  same  as  John  G.  Miller  (1811)  ;  Thomas  C.  Miller 
of  Powhatan  was  a  member  of  the  Junior  class  in  1821 ;  the 
other  items  are  in  place.  Members  of  literary  societies  some- 
times engage  in  foolery,  even  for  record.  For  instance,  some- 
body passed  himself  off  as  a  prophet  on  one  of  these  minute 
books.  He  wrote,  as  if  writing  in  the  20  's,  that  there  would 
be  a  civil  war  in  America  in  about  forty  years.  But  it  looks 
as  if  the  writing  might  have  been  done  no  farther  back  than 
the  60 's.  So  boys  have  been  known  to  affix  'M.  C  to  their 
names,  and  long  after  possibly  were  excellent  Congressmen. 

If  Robert  Macon  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
he  has  been  forgotten.  Very  likely  he  was  a  student  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  and  a  graduate.  Macons  were  well  fixed  in  Pow- 
hatan County  a  hundred  years  ago. 

Robert  Carter  Nicholas 

Grandson  of  John  Nicholas  of  Buckingham  County  (brother 
of  Robert  Carter  Nicholas  of  the  Revolution) .  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  1820.  Merchant.  Presiding  magistrate  of  Buck- 
ingham County  before  the  Civil  war.    Died  1868. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  Penick 

Entered  Hampden  Sidney  in  1820.  Born  probably  in  Cum- 
berland County.  Physician,  and  a  very  successful  one,  at 
Wetumpka,  near  Montgomery,  Alabama,  where  he  died. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


216  [1820 

Albert  G.  Smith 

The  name  Albert  Smith,  of  Lunenburg,  appears  on  the 
catalogue  of  the  Philanthropic  Society,  listed  under  1820. 
The  Washington  and  Lee  Catalogue  gives  under  1823,  Albert 
G.  Smith,  Lunenburg.  In  1827  Albert  G.  Smith  took  his 
medical  degree  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  Albert 
G.  Smith,  of  Washington  College,  registered  as  of  Lunenburg 
County,  is  written  down  "Physician:  Pittsylvania  County: 
Alabama:  Died  1851.,,  Dr.  Albert  G.  Smith  may  have  been 
a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney. 


COMMENCEMENT 

AT 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY  COLLEGE 

ON  THUESDAY,  SEPTEMBER  28,  1820 

MUSIC 

1.  An  Eulogy  in  Greek  on  Pericles...- By  William  W.  Oliver* 

2.  An  Oration  on  the  Literature  of  Virginia ~ „ By  N.  Page* 

3.  A  Forensic  Debate  on  the  Permanency  of  the  American  Republic, 

By  D.  A.  Penick  and  E.  Caldwell* 

MUSIC 

4.  A  Poem  on  American  Genius ~ J$y  J.  B.  Harrison* 

5.  A  Conference  between „ J.  N.  Vanlear  and  H.  N.  Pharr* 

6.  A  Satirical  Oration „ _ By  C.  Johnston* 

7.  An  Oration  on  the  Superiority  of  Literary  Eminence  to  Military 

Glory _ „.„ By  W.  H.  Pollard* 

8.  An  Oration  on  Dueling JBy  I.  Cochran* 

9.  The  Philosophical  Oration  on  the  Dignity  of  the  Mind, 

By  J.  B.  Clauselle 
Candidate  for  the  Bachelor's  Degree 

10.  An  Oration _ By  the  Rev.  E.  Baptist 

Candidate  for  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts 

MUSIC 

11.  An  Eulogy  on  the  Rev.  Moses  Hoge,  Late  President  of  Hampden 

Sidney  College By  the  Bev.  A.  W.  KUpatrieTc 

Candidate  for  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts 


1820]  217 

DEGREES  CONFERRED 

MUSIC 

12.     An  Oration  on  the  Unremitted  Cultivation  of  Literature,  with  the 

Valedictory  Addresses ..By  J.  Harris 

Candidate  for  the  Bachelor's  Degree 

SACRED  MUSIC 

PRAYER 

From  the  FranTclin  Press,  Richmond. 
*  Seniors  elect. 

Doctor  Hoge  died  July,  1820.  This  is  the  inscription 
of  the  memorial  tablet,  at  the  Pine  Street  Presbyterian 
Church,  Philadelphia  [in  lecture  room  to  the  right  of  the 
platform] : 

Near  this  monument 

Erected  by  filial  affection 

Reposes  all  that  was  mortal  of  the 

REV.  MOSES  HOGE,  D.  D. 

President  of  Hampden  Sidney  College 

And  Professor  of  Divinity  in  the 

Theological  Seminary  of  the  Synod  of  Virginia 

A  man  of  genius,  profound  erudition 

and  ardent  piety 
He  lived  beloved  and  died  lamented 

aged  68  years. 
From  the  General  Assembly  of  the 

Presbyterian  Church 

in  the  United  States  of  America 

to  the  General  Assembly  of  the  church  in  heaven 

his  translation 

was  accomplished  July  5,  1820. 


Being  dead,  he  yet  speaketh" 

Richard  North 

Philadelphia 

fecit 


\82l 


Hugh  Caldwell 

A  native  of  Pennsylvania,  Hugh  Caldwell  graduated  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1821.  He  then  studied  two  years 
at  Princeton  Seminary,  and  died  in  1831,  in  the  Choctaw 
country  where  he  was  serving  as  a  missionary. 

' '  I  cherish  with  the  tenderest  affection  the  memory  of  Hugh 
Caldwell,  although  more  than  forty-five  years  have  passed 
since  January,  1819." 

Autobiography  of  William  S.  White,  p.  26. 

James  Duncan 

March  16,  1821,  the  Union  Society  conferred  honorary  mem- 
bership on  "Mr.  James  Duncan,  who  is  about  to  leave  this 
neighborhood."  The  Literary  societies  had  not  begun  so 
early  as  1821  their  mad  quest  for  electioneering  additamenta 
in  the  form  of  imposing  names  for  their  rolls,  secured  by 
writing  to  anybody  of  celebrity  and  asking  him  to  sign  up  by 
letter.  Soon  after  1821  the  quest  began,  and  if  antiquarians 
(to  call  them  that)  from  time  to  time  had  not  clipped  off  the 
signatures,  there  might  be  now  in  storage  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  a  considerable  batch  of  interesting  autographs. 
Letters  of  Daniel  Webster,  John  C.  Calhoun,  and  of  many 
other  public  men  are  to  be  seen  in  the  archives  cupboard, 
but  identification  is  possible  chiefly  by  courtesy  of  the  ab- 
stractors of  the  autographs  who  have  left  the  great  names 
in  pencil  to  show  what  the  temptation  was.  Mellificatis  apes. 
Before  the  societies  began  their  search  for  extraordinary 
honorary  members,  it  was  the  custom  to  confer  honorary 
membership  (at  times  called  'graduate  membership')  on  asso- 
ciates about  to  leave  the  institution.  Note  that  in  James 
Duncan's  case  he  is  "about  to  leave  the  neighborhood."  There 
is  a  tradition  that  David  Duncan  [father  of  President  James 


1821]  219 

Duncan  of  Randolph  Macon  College] ,  taught  school  about 
1819  near  Hampden  Sidney.  Maybe  it  was  not  David  Dun- 
can, but  James  Duncan,  his  brother  or  near  relation,  that 
taught  school  at  "Slate  Hill,"  near  Hampden  Sidney. 

Andrew  S.  Fulton 

b.  1800,  d.  1884.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  College  from 
Augusta  County  in  1821 ;  studied  law  under  Judge  Baldwin 
at  Staunton;  settled  at  Abingdon,  Washington  County,  and 
then  at  Wytheville ;  member  of  the  House  of  Delegates  from 
Wythe  County;  representative  in  Congress  1847-1852,  Whig; 
Judge,  15th  circuit,  for  seventeen  terms. 

Summers,  Hist,  of  Washington  County,  758. 

John  H.  Fulton 

Born  in  Augusta  County;  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College;  studied  law  under  Judge  Baldwin  at  Staunton; 
House  of  Delegates,  Washington  County,  1823-24;  State 
Senate,  1829-30;  elected  to  Congress  for  term  1833-35  as  a 
Whig,  and  candidate  for  re-election;  died  Jan.  1836,  and 
buried  at  Abingdon. 

Summers,  History  of  Washington  County,  757. 

It  is  possible  that  this  record  is  inexact.  John  H.  Fulton 
of  Augusta,  was  a  student  at  Judge  Taylor's  law  school  in 
Cumberland  County,  1821.  He,  as  well  as  his  brother  An- 
drew, may  have  been  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

Jesse  Burton  Harrison 

b.  1805,  d.  1841.  Son  of  Samuel  Jordan  Harrison  of  Lynch- 
burg, a  wise  and  successful  merchant.  J.  B.  Harrison  owed 
his  early  maturity  of  mind  in  large  measure  to  the  excellent 
private  classical  schools  which  it  was  his  good  fortune  to 
attend  in  his  native  town.  In  1818  he  went  to  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  where  he  graduated  with  first  honor  in  1821. 


220  [1821 

Accompanied  by  his  classmate,  Nelson  Page,  he  went  to  Har- 
vard to  hear  Tieknor's  lectures  and  to  follow  law  studies. 
In  1823  he  wrote  a  letter  descriptive  of  Harvard  to  Mr.  Jef- 
ferson, a  friend  of  his  father's.  He  took  his  B.  L.  at  Harvard 
in  1825,  but  seems  to  have  been  predominantly  interested  in 
literature.  He  applied  for  a  professorship  at  Chapel  Hill 
and  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  but  was  judged  too  young, 
at  least,  for  either  place.  He  travelled  in  Europe  a  year  or 
two  about  1829,  and  talked  with  Goethe  at  Weimar.  Some 
experience  of  Europe  completely  cured  him  of  his  academical 
aspirations.  On  the  advice  of  his  distant  kinsman,  Henry 
Clay,  he  settled  in  the  South  West,  as  lawyer  and  journalist, 
and  died  of  yellow  fever  at  New  Orleans  in  his  thirty-sixth 
year.  Mr.  Harrison  was  a  man  of  high  thought,  liberal 
opinions,  and  of  pronounced  literary  skill.  See  his  extra- 
ordinary address  at  Hampden  Sidney,  in  1827,  "The  Pros- 
pects of  Letters  and  Taste  in  Virginia. " 

Harrisons  of  Skimino.     By  Fairfax  Harrison,  pp.  84-143. 

Cyrus  Johnston 

b.  1797,  d.  1855.  A  native  of  Mecklenburg  County,  North 
Carolina;  prepared  for  college  at  John  Makemie  Wilson's 
school,  Cyrus  Johnston  after  graduating  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  in  1821,  studied  theology  under  Dr.  John  Robinson, 
a  learned  divine  and  excellent  man  of  the  Mecklenburg  region 
in  North  Carolina.  Dr.  Johnston  (D.  D.,  University  of  North 
Carolina,  1853),  was  pastor  of  churches  in  South  Carolina; 
and  for  ten  years  until  his  death,  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  at  Charlotte,  North  Carolina,  at  the  same  time  acting 
as  principal  of  the  Charlotte  Academy  for  girls.  He  was  for 
about  a  dozen  years  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Davidson  College. 

William  W.  Oliver 

A.  B.,  1821.  M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsylvania,  1825.  Dr. 
Oliver's  home  was  in  Mecklenburg  County. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


1821]  221 

Nelson  Page 

b.  1801,  d.  1850.  Son  of  Major  Carter  Page  of  Cumberland 
County.  Lawyer.  A.  B.,  1821.  Trustee,  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  1825-1850.  Elected  to  House  of  Delegates  from  Cum- 
berland County,  1849-50;  1850-51.  Mr.  Page's  home  was  at 
Ca  Ira,  Cumberland  County.  He  was  a  brother-in-law  of 
President  Cushing. 

Page  Genealogy,  p.  109. 

Daniel  Allen  Penick 

b.  1797,  d,  1870.  A  native  of  Cumberland  County,  Daniel 
A.  Penick  was  at  college  (A.  B.,  1821)  a  student  of  influence 
in  a  solid  way,  especially  as  a  member  of  the  Union  Society. 
He  studied  three  years  at  Princeton  Seminary,  was  a  minister 
about  four  years  after  1824  in  Powhatan  County  and  then 
for  seven  years  at  Milton,  North  Carolina.  In  1835  he  went 
to  Cabarrus  County,  North  Carolina,  and  was  pastor  of  Rocky 
River  Church  in  that  County  for  thirty-five  years  until  his 
death.  He  maintained  the  Rocky  River  Academy  up  to  the 
Civil  War. 

James  Perm 

Colonel  Gabriel  Penn  of  Amherst  County,  (a  first  cousin 
to  John  Penn,  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence), 
married  a  daughter  of  Colonel  Richard  Callaway  of  Bedford 
County.  Gabriel  Penn  was  a  relation  of  William  Penn,  the 
Quaker.  It  is  to  be  supposed  that  James  and  George  Penn 
of  Nelson  County,  at  Hampden  Sidney  1821-1824,  were  des- 
cendants of  Gabriel  Penn.  The  Quakers  were  strong,  and 
still  orthodox,  in  the  Lynchburg  region  something  over  a 
hundred  years  ago. 

See  Brown,  Cabells,  295-296. 


222  [1821 

John  Allison  Van  Lear 

A  descendant  of  John  Van  Lear  who  came  from  Holland 
to  Philadelphia.  A  grandson  of  John  Van  Lear  settled  in 
Augusta  County,  Virginia,  and  he  was  the  grandfather  of 
John  A.  Van  Lear,  (A.  B.,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1821) 
who  was  born  in  Montgomery  County,  about  four  miles  from 
the  present  Blacksburg.  John  A.  Van  Lear  was  for  a  good 
many  years  until  his  death  in  1850,  pastor  of  Mossy  Creek 
Church,  Augusta  County. 

Foote,  Sketches  of  Virginia,  II,  38. 


i  of  E rig- 


As  Virginia  was  first  settled   by  members  of  the  Churci 
land,  and   the   emigration  of  dissenters    not    encouraged,   it   was 
more  than  a  hundred  years  ere  they  were  found  in  any  consider- 
able numbers.     Some  years  previous  to  the  revolutionary  war,  the 


Hampden  Sydney  College,  Gushing  Foundation 

Rev.  Samuel  Davies,  of  Hanover  county,  in  eonj unction  with 
others,  formed  the  presbytery  of  Hanover.  The  principal  mass 
of  Presbyterians  then  in  lower  Virginia  was  in  Prince  Edward 
and  the  neighboring  counties,  among  whom  were  some  French 
Huguenots,  In  a  few  years,  as  they  increased  in  numbers,  they 
determined  to  establish  a  seminary*  to  be  conducted  on  Presbyte- 
rian .principles  ;  William  and  Mary,  the  only  college  in  the  state, 
being  fostered  particularly  by  the  Episcopalians.  The  academy 
was  "accordingly  established  in  Prince  Edward,  at  a  point  conve- 
nient for  the  Presbyterians  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina."*  This 
institution  was  founded  in  1774,  and  was  called  the  Academy  of 
Hampden  Sydney.  "It  was  chartered  in  1783,  and  received  its 
present  name  from  those  two  martyrs  of  liberty,  J.  Hampden  and 
A.  Sydney.  It  was  established,  and  has  ever  been  supported,  by 
the  private  munificence  of  public-spirited  individuals.  It  has  an 
elevated,  healthy,  and  pleasant  situation,  one  mile  from  the  court- 
house, and  80  from  Richmond.  Although  the  institution  has  had 
to  encounter  many  difficulties  for  want  of  funds,  yet  it  has  gen- 
erally been  in  successful  operation,  and  has  educated  upwards  of 
2,000  young  men;  many  of  whom  have  been  of  eminent  useful-- 
ness,  and  some  of  great  abilities.     More  instructors  have  emana- 


1822 


Hampden  Sidney  College  was  founded  in  1775,  and  has 
been  principally  supported  by  the  munificence  of  individuals. 
It  has  received  from  the  State  two  tracts  of  escheated  land 
which  were  valued  at  $5,000,  and  has  obtained  at  different 
times,  as  the  necessities  of  the  Institution  required,  the  amount 
of  $40,000  from  private  liberality.  But  nearly  the  whole  of 
these  funds  has  been  expended  in  erecting  the  necessary  col- 
lege buildings,  and  purchasing  the  Library  and  Philosophical 
Apparatus.  The  present  funds  of  the  Institution,  exclusive 
of  the  College  buildings,  Library,  and  Chemical  and  Philo- 
sophical Apparatus,  consist  of  120  acres  of  land  on  which  the 
College  buildings  are  situated,  one  other  small  tract  in  the 
vicinity,  and  48  shares  of  Bank  Stock  of  the  Bank  of  Virginia. 
The  annual  income  of  this  property  is  about  $200.  Although 
the  institution  has  had  to  encounter  many  difficulties  from 
want  of  funds,  yet  it  has  generally  been  in  successful  opera- 
tion, and  has  educated  upwards  of  1500  young  men,  many  of 
whom  are  of  eminent  usefulness  in  the  country,  and  some  of 
distinguished  abilities. 

But  the  Institution  suffers  greatly  at  this  time  from  a  want 
of  better  accommodations  for  the  students.  Although  the 
Trustees  have  procured  by  private  subscription,  within  the 
last  two  years,  $14,300,  which  has  enabled  them  to  commence 
a  new  building  and  complete  24  rooms,  yet  such  has  been  the 
increase  in  the  number  of  students  that  they  are  subjected  to 
the  great  inconvenience  of  being  crowded  together  to  the 
number  of  3  or  4  in  a  single  room. 

To  complete  this  building,  which  will  be  187  feet  long,  4 
stories  high,  and  contain  48  rooms  for  students  and  5  large 
public  rooms,  will  require  an  additional  sum  of  12  or  15,000 
dollars. 

[Statement  of  President  Cushing  at  p.  16  of  catalogue  for  1822 — 
catalogue  as  of  December,  the  second  printed  catalogue  issued  by  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.] 


224  [1822 

Napoleon  Archer 

Born  in  Chesterfield  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney 
1821.  [One  year,  sophomore  class.]  A  man  of  brilliant  in- 
tellect.   Died  at  Richmond,  1864. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Joseph  S.  Baker 

Catalogues  for  1821  and  1822  show  the  name  of  "J.  S. 
Baker,  Savannah,  Georgia/'  a  member  of  the  Junior  class 
and  then  a  member  of  the  Senior  class.  Mr.  Baker  cared  more 
for  literature  than  for  exact  studies,  and  seems  not  to  have 
graduated.  At  the  April  Exhibition  of  1820  a  poem  on  Love 
of  Country  was  spoken  by  J.  Baker.  Dec.  20,  1821,  Joseph 
S.  Baker  was  chosen  by  the  Union  Society  as  perhaps  its  chief 
representative  for  the  next  following  April  Exhibition.  At 
the  second  anniversary  meeting  of  the  Literary  and  Philo- 
sophical Society,  there  were  orations  by  Dr.  Rice  and  Joseph 
S.  Baker,  September,  1825.  Dr.  J.  S.  Baker  was  the  poet 
designate  for  the  eighth  anniversary  meeting  of  the  Literary 
and  Philosophical  Society,  September,  1831.  About  that  time 
Dr.  Baker  may  be  traced  through  business  in  which  he  was 
involved,  items  of  which  are  recorded  at  Prince  Edward  Court 
House.  He  had  bought  a  large  plantation  on  the  Appomattox 
River  not  far  from  Petersburg — possibly  two  plantations, 
"Cobbs"  and  "Mount  Airy"  in  Chesterfield  County.  About 
the  same  time  he  also  had  some  interest  in  property  at  Rice- 
borough,  Liberty  County,  Georgia.  Therefore,  he  may  have 
been  a  relation  of  Daniel  Baker. 

James  Coles  Bruce 

b.  1806,  d.  1865.  Son  of  James  Bruce  of  Halifax  County, 
who  had  made  his  own  fortune  and  died  one  of  the  wealthiest 
men  of  his  time  in  the  country  at  large.  James  Bruce  was 
many  years  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.    James 


1822]  225 

C.  Bruce  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney,  1821-1822. 
Going  to  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  he  graduated 
there  in  1825.  The  session  of  1827  he  was  at  the  University 
of  Virginia,  probably  for  law.  He  was  also  for  a  short  time 
at  Harvard.  He  was  a  Whig  in  politics,  and  seldom  held  any 
public  office.  One  of  the  greatest  slaveholders  in  the  South, 
his  mature  opinion  was  that  the  best  policy  in  regard  to  the 
blacks  was  gradual  emancipation.  He  thought  that  the  white 
people  of  the  South  were  by  all  odds  the  chief  losers  by  slavery. 
(July  4,  1847  address,  cf.  Howison,  History  of  Virginia,  II, 
519).  Mr.  Bruce  was  not  in  sympathy  with  the  agitators  for 
a  civil  war.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Secession  Convention  of 
Virginia,  but  until  the  invasion  of  Virginia  was  no  secession 
man.  He  knew  how  to  make  a  speech  and  how  to  write.  See 
his  Alumni  Society  address  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  1840 
(society  organized  in  1838)  and  his  interesting  and  humorous 
letter  on  agriculture  to  the  agricultural  bureau  of  the  Patent 
Office  about  1850.  James  C.  Bruce  lived  at  a  place  called 
'Berry  Hill'  in  Halifax  County,  a  very  fine  place. 

Virginia  Historical  Magazine,  XI,  331-332. 

Patrick  Henry  Cabell 

"Born  at  'Union  Hill,'  July,  1804;  educated  at  home  and 
at  the  school  of  Rev.  John  Hendren  until  1814;  in  1816-17 
went  to  school  to  William  L.  Harris ;  in  1817-1819  lived  with 
Hon.  Thomas  S.  McClelland  in  Lynchburg  and  went  to  school ; 
'board  and  tuition  one  year  $150'  (name  of  teacher  not  men- 
tioned in  Mr.  McClelland 's  account).  From  March  1820,  to 
March  1821,  lived  with  Mr.  John  J.  Flournoy  and  went  to 
school  to  Mr.  Venable  in  Prince  Edward;  board  $75  and 
tuition  $30.  From  March  1821,  to  March  1822,  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College;  board  $100  and  tuition  $30.  On  May  29, 
1822,  Mr.  Flournoy  wrote  to  his  father,  Col.  William  Cabell, 
"I  rode  with  Patrick  today  to  college,  he  gets  a  room  on  the 
lower  floor,  under  one  of  the  teachers,  which  I  think  a  good 
situation  for  study.     I  obtained  from  Mr.  Cushing  the  ex- 


226  [1822 

penses  of  the  summer  session,  $62. ' '  Site  for  the  New  College 
building  was  chosen  in  March,  1822.  In  September  following, 
Mr.  Flournoy  wrote,  "Patrick  was  unfortunately  taken  sick 
a  few  days  before  the  examination.  The  president  says  he 
has  conducted  himself  in  an  orderly  manner. ' '  Patrick  Cabell 
died  at  'Union  Hill,'  November  22,  1824. 
Brown,  p.  396. 

Wilson  Miles  Cary 

Born  in  1806;  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1822-23  (Freshman 
class)  ;  and  at  the  University  of  Virginia  in  1825.  On  the 
printed  catalogue  for  1822,  the  name  appears  as  'W.  M.  Cary, 
Fluvanna.'  This  was  probably  Wilson  Miles  Cary,  a  son  of 
Wilson  Cary  of  "Oak  Hill,"  Fluvanna  County.  That  family, 
as  a  whole,  went  to  the  Southwest,  to  Mississippi. 

See  Sally  Cary.     By  Wilson  Miles  Cary  [of  Baltimore]  with  notes 
by  Fairfax  Harrison..    New  York,  1916,  p.  88. 

Isaac  Cochran 

b.  1798,  d.  1879.  Born  at  Londonderry,  Vermont ;  a  student 
at  Middlebury  College,  Vermont,  Isaac  Cochran,  like  so  many 
other  New  Englanders,  came  South  as  a  teacher.  In  1818 
he  was  teaching  in  Currituck  County,  North  Carolina.  His 
name  does  not  appear  on  the  printed  catalogues  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  1821-1822,  but  from  programmes  presented 
it  is  evident  that  he  was  a  student  at  the  college  1820-1822. 
His  graduating  address  in  1822  was,  "The  Influence  of  Mis- 
sionaries on  Literature  and  Civilization."  It  is  possible  that 
he  expanded  this  into  a  book,  but  if  so,  the  book  cannot  at 
once  be  traced.  Mr.  Cochran  was  for  more  than  forty  years 
pastor  of  Buffalo  Church,  Prince  Edward  County. 

James  Herron  Dillon 

Edward  Dillon  of  'Sandyford,'  Prince  Edward  County  [a 
little  above  Farmville]  died  in  1816.  The  tradition  is  that 
he  was  a  near  relation  of  the  Earl  of  Roscommon  of  those 


1822]  227 

times,  and  was  involved  in  the  Irish  revolution  of  '98.  He 
left  a  pretty  large  estate,  lands  in  Virginia,  Tennessee  and 
Kentucky,  &c.  He  named  seven  sons  in  his  will:  Edward 
Davies,  James  Herron,  Patrick  Henry,  John  Gilliam,  Richard 
Macon,  Watkins  Leigh,  and  Alexander  Steptoe.  James  H. 
Dillon  was  a  member  of  the  Senior  class  at  Hampden  Sidney 
in  1822.  Edward  Dillon  was  a  student  at  Hampden  about 
1815 ;  John  G.  Dillon  in  1825 ;  and  Alexander  Dillon  towards 
1832.  At  least  two  of  the  Dillons  were  physicians  settled  in 
Prince  Edward  County.  James  H.  Dillon  is  written  down 
M.  D.  on  the  Philanthropic  Society  Catalogue,  as  is  John  G. 
Dillon  on  the  Union  Society  catalogue.  Alexander  Dillon  was 
certainly  a  physician.  Old  residents  of  Prince  Edward 
County  recall  the  two  doctors  Dillon  of  the  county,  both  per- 
haps bachelors.  But  James  H.  Dillon,  M.  D.,  (University 
of  Virginia,  1841)  may  have  been  a  son  of  one  of  Edward 
Dillon's  sons,  and  the  entry  on  the  Philanthropic  Society 
catalogue  a  confusion. 

"The  tall  form,  the  ruddy  face,  the  thin  grey  locks  of  Dr. 
Dillon,  how  familiar  and  how  welcome  they  are  and  have  been 
for  ever  so  many  years  to  the  whole  country  side  near  Farm- 
ville.  I  was  with  ' '  Dr.  Jim ' '  in  his  quaint  old  house  '  Sandy- 
ford,'  the  scene  of  unbounded  hospitality  during  the  days  of 
the  Randolphs,  on  one  of  those  terrific  nights  in  the  winter  of 
'55-6." 

See  "A  Piece  About  Doctors,"  by  Geo.  W.  Bagby. 

Joel  Watkins  Dupuy 

b.  1800,  d.  1854.  Son  of  Captain  John  Dupuy,  who  lived 
near  the  Welsh  Track  Meeting  House  (now  Bethlehem 
Church)  in  Prince  Edward  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney in  1821.  Studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Mettauer  and  at 
Jefferson  Med.  College,  Philadelphia.  Lived  and  practiced 
his    profession    near    Darlington    Heights,    Prince    Edward 


228  [1822 

County.  Died  in  Tennessee,  at  the  home  of  his  brother-in-law, 
James  H.  Dupuy,  having  gone  out  to  Arkansas  to  look  over 
the  country  there  with  a  view  to  purchase. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 
Dupuy  Genealogy. 

Richard  Fretwell 

Son  of  Alexander  Fretwell  of  Albemarle  County,  and 
brother-in-law  of  John  Barksdale  (1825).  Richard  Fretwell 's 
home  in  Albemarle  was  on  the  east  side  of  Dudley's  Mountain, 
About  1840  he  removed  to  Lewis  County,  West  Virginia. 
He  had  ten  children. 

Woods,  History  of  Albemarle  County,  p.  197. 

John  Mark  Fulton 

In  1822  John  M.  Fulton  was  a  member  of  the  Senior  class 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  He  was  living  at  his  father's 
house,  which  must  have  been  near  the  college.  The  catalogue 
of  Union  Seminary  lists  the  name  of  John  M.  Fulton,  'a  stu- 
dent at  Hampden  Sidney  1816-1822,'  but  does  not  give  him 
the  title  of  Bachelor.  Mr.  Fulton  was  a  minister  of  the  Pres- 
byterian church  at  Buckingham  Court  House  (1825-1829) ; 
in  Pulaski  County  (1830-1834).  From  1836  to  1840  he  was 
in  charge  of  churches  near  Columbus,  Ohio ;  and  then  removed 
to  Iowa.    He  died  in  1852  at  Weston,  Missouri. 

Abner  Williamson  Gay 

Born  in  Rutherford  County,  North  Carolina.  At  Hampden 
Sidney  1821-1822.  An  advertisement  in  the  Fayetteville 
Journal,  Dec.  1826,  announcing  the  work  of  Smithfield  Acad- 
emy (Johnston  County,  North  Carolina),  under  the  superin- 
tendence of  the  Rev.  Abner  W.  Gay,  includes  a  testimonial 
regarding  Mr.  Gay's  scholarship,  signed  by  W.  W.  Blauvelt, 


1822]  229 

clerk  of  the  Faculty  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  During 
1828  and  1829  Mr.  Gay  was  Principal  of  the  Wilkesborough 
Academy,  Wilkes  County,  North  Carolina. 

North  Carolina  Schools  and  Academies,  194,  637,  638. 

Thomas  D.  Hudson 

Born,  Montgomery  County,  1798.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, 1819.  In  1821  Thomas  D.  Hudson  was  listed  in  the 
printed  catalogue  as  a  member  of  the  Senior  class:  'student 
of  theology  and  died  before  completing  the  course,  in  Bedford 
County,  Sept.  3,  1822.'  [Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript.]  It  is 
difficult  to  understand  this.  Dr.  Hoge  had  died  the  summer 
of  1820.  Thomas  Hudson  must  have  been  a  regular  student 
of  the  college,  perhaps  expecting  to  be  a  minister  of  the 
church. 

Andrew  Hunter 

b.  1804,  d.  1888.  Son  of  David  Hunter  of  Berkeley  County, 
Virginia  [now  "West  Virginia] .  Andrew  Hunter  seems  to  have 
spent  nearly  ten  years  at  Hampden  Sidney,  but  if  he  was  born 
in  1804  he  could  hardly  have  commenced  studies  at  Hampden 
Sidney  in  1812,  when  the  name  first  appears  on  the  records. 
These  are  little  problems  for  the  solving.  At  any  rate,  An- 
drew Hunter  was  several  years  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney, 
graduating  with  first  honor  (if  the  Valedictorian  was  the 
first  honor  man  then),  in  the  year  1822.  Andrew  Hunter, 
of  a  vigorous  race,  was  a  learned  lawyer,  really  a  student  of 
the  law.  He  was  a  Whig  in  politics,  and  was  for  many  years 
counsel  for  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad.  In  1850  he  was 
a  member  of  the  Convention.  The  indictment  and  prosecution 
of  John  Brown  in  1859  was  part  of  Mr.  Hunter's  business. 
He  handled  the  case  with  exact  justice;  and  with  so  little 
acrimony  that  John  Brown  asked  him  to  write  his  will.  Sen- 
ator Voorhees  was  at  the  trial,  counsel  on  the  other  side,  and 
described  it  as  *  •  the  most  temperate  and  conservative  judicial 


230  [1822 

tribunal  ever  convened  when  all  the  surrounding  circum- 
stances are  considered."  In  1864  Mr.  Hunter's  cousin,  Gen. 
David  Hunter,  took  particular  pains  to  burn  down  Mr.  Hun- 
ter's house  near  Harper's  Ferry.  On  rebuilding,  Mr.  Hunter 
had  a  small  niche  left  for  a  statuette  of  the  General.  But  civil 
wars  are  not  the  only  discouraging  manifestations  of  human 
nature. 

Sketch  by  Dr.  Hopkins  in  Kaleidoscope,  1908. 
Southern  Hist.  Publications,  I,  165-195. 

Drury  Lacy 

b.  1802,  d.  1884.  Son  of  Drury  Lacy,  in  1802  (having  with- 
drawn from  the  direction  of  Hampden  Sidney  College)  living 
at  "Ararat,"  Prince  Edward  County,  where  he  was  conduct- 
ing a  school  in  some  sense  a  competitor  of  Hampden  Sidney. 
Trained  at  his  father's  school,  Drury  Lacy  spent  a  year  at 
Washington  College  (of  which  his  father  had  been  elected  a 
Trustee  in  1791) ;  and  then  a  year  at  Hampden  Sidney,  grad- 
uating at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1822.  He  then  taught  four  or 
five  years,  entered  Union  Seminary  in  1827  and  finished  the 
course  there  in  three  years.  Pastor  of  a  church  at  Newberne, 
North  Carolina,  1834-1837,  and  at  Raleigh,  North  Carolina, 
1837-1855,  Dr.  Lacy  was  from  1855  to  1861  President  of 
Davidson  College,  North  Carolina.  During  the  Civil  War 
Dr.  Lacy  was  a  chaplain  in  the  Confederate  army.  After 
the  war,  he  returned  to  Raleigh,  and  spent  his  declining 
years  as  teacher,  and  in  preaching  to  vacant  churches  in  that 
neighborhood.  The  sum  of  the  evidence  is  that  Dr.  Lacy  was 
a  truly  benevolent  man. 

It  is  enteresting  to  recall  that  while  he  was  at  Newberne, 
Dr.  Lacy  prepared  for  Hampden  Sidney  College,  his  nephew 
the  late  Dr.  Moses  D.  Hoge  of  Richmond. 

Stierwin  McRae 

Born  in  Henrico  County,  a  grandson  of  the  Rev.  Christo- 
pher Macrae,  minister  of  Littleton  Parish,  Cumberland  County. 


1822]  231 

Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1820.  A.  B.,  1822 :  first  honor  ( ?) . 
Lawyer.  Member  of  the  House  of  Delegates,  from  Hen- 
rico County,  1839-1846.  Colonel,  4th  Reg.  Virginia  Militia 
before  the  civil  war.  Drilled  a  number  of  cavalry  regiments 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war.  Colonel  McRae 's  interest  in 
antiquarian  matters  is  traceable  as  far  back  as  1871,  when 
he  published  an  article  in  the  Old  Dominion  Magazine  on  the 
history  of  the  Virginia  State  Capitol.  In  1872  he  issued  as  a 
State  document  an  essay :  ' '  Washington — his  person  as  repre- 
sented by  artists. ' '  In  1875  Col.  McRae  began  to  occupy  him- 
self with  the  condition,  arrangement  and  publication  of  the 
manuscript  material  in  the  State  Library.  He  made  several 
reports  to  the  legislature  on  that  subject,  and  did  much  to 
further  the  publication  of  Dr.  Palmer's  " Calendar  of  State 
Papers."     Colonel  McRae  died  in  1889. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Swem,  Bibliography  of  Virginia,  Part  III. 

William  Nelson  Page 

b.  1803.  Son  of  Major  Carter  Page  of  Cumberland  County. 
A.  B.,  1822.  Professor  of  the  Latin  Language  and  Roman 
Literature,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1827-1829.  Principal 
of  Anne  Smith  Academy,  Lexington,  for  a  good  many  years. 
About  1839  Mr.  Page  had  a  school  at  Ca  Ira,  Cumberland 
County.  Dr.  George  W.  Bagby  was  at  school  there,  very  likely 
after  the  breaking  up  of  Mr.  Ballentine's  school  at  Prince 
Edward  Court  House. 

Samuel  Pannill 

It  is  not  impossible  that  Samuel  Pannill  of  Campbell  Coun- 
ty (at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1822,  as  an  irregular  student, 
not  a  candidate  for  a  degree)  was  Samuel  Pannill,  "member 
of  the  legislature  from  Campbell  County  (?),  member  of  the 
Board  of  Public  Works,  and  president  of  the  Roanoke  Navi- 
gation Company,  who  died  in  his  ninety-fourth  yea'*  " 

See  Brown,  Cabells,  Etc.,  p,  439. 


232  [1822 

Hugh  Rose  Pleasants 

Born  at  "Contention,"  Goochland  County,  Feb.  21,  1809. 
Second  son  of  Governor  James  Pleasants.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney  182.1,  left  1822  [Freshman] ;  student  at  the  Univer- 
sity of  Virginia  during  the  first  session  of  that  institution 
(1825).  Lawyer  for  a  few  years.  First  editor  of  the 
Richmond  Dispatch.  Connected  at  different  times  with 
the  Richmond  Whig,  of  which  his  brother,  John  Hampden 
Pleasants  was  founder.  Served  as  private  during  the  first 
year  of  the  Civil  War,  with  the  Richmond  Howitzers  on  the 
Peninsula.  Especially  well  read  in  history  and  English  litera- 
ture.    Died  April  27,  1870. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  H.  Pollard 

Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1817;  A.  B.,  1822;  licensed  as 
a  Presbyterian  minister ;  studied  one  year  at  Union  Seminary 
1826-27;  missionary  in  Halifax,  Campbell,  and  adjoining 
counties,  1828-1838;  joined  the  Baptist  church  in  1843.  In 
the  fall  of  1847  the  Rev.  William  H.  Pollard  was  appointed 
an  agent  to  raise  money  for  Hampden  Sidney  by  the  scholar- 
ship plan.  Within  two  years  he  sold  sixty  scholarships,  on  a 
3%  and  expenses  contract.  This  was  a  considerable  achieve- 
ment. The  record  in  Union  Seminary  Catalogue  is  to  be  cor- 
rected: William  H.  Pollard,  Hampden  Sidney  1822,  died  a 
good  deal  later  than  1844,  having  performed  a  conspicuous 
service  for  the  college  of  Hampden  Sidney.  Mr.  Pollard,  who 
came  to  college  from  Hanover  County,  died  in  1855.  Two 
years  before  his  death  he  became  a  Presbyterian  again. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 
Calendar  of  Board  Minutes. 
Begister  of  Winchester  Presbytery. 


1822]  233 

George  E.  Skipwith 

Possibly  a  son  of  Colonel  Skipwith  of  "Hors  du  monde," 
Cumberland  County,  a  brother  of  Sir  Peyton  Skipwith  of 
Mecklenburg  County.  Benjamin  Henry  Latrobe  stopped  at 
Colonel  Skipwith 's  in  1796,  to  meet  Richard  N.  Venable  and 
others  interested  in  the  improvement  of  the  Appomattox 
River.  Mr.  Latrobe  entered  in  his  journal:  "The  place  has 
a  name  very  appropriate — Horsdumonde.  No  possibility 
of  outside  communication  by  letter  or  visit,  but  by  riding 
half  a  dozen  miles  into  the  world.  In  other  respects  there 
is  a  great  deal  of  worldly  beauty  and  convenience  about  it. 
To  the  east  runs  the  Appomattox  to  which  a  lawn  extends 
.  .  .  .  Sir  Peyton  Skipwith  is  one  of  the  very  few  who 
keep  up  their  title  in  this  country.  The  title  of  baronet  is 
a  phantom  even  in  England,  having  no  real  privilege  annexed 
to  it;  here  it  is  the  lank  ghost  of  a  phantom.  Among  the 
follies  of  mankind  the  adoration  of  this  title  is  one  of  the 
most  unaccountable.  But  captains,  majors,  colonels,  and  gen- 
erals elbow  a  man  out  of  all  hopes  even  of  this  country.  Col- 
onel Skipwith  is  a  man  of  strong  mental  powers.  His  house 
is  a  most  pleasant  one.  We  were  most  hospitably  entertained ; 
the  sense  and  wit  of  Messrs.  Skipwith  and  Venable  provided 
the  mental  feast." 

Journal  of  Benjamin  Henry  Latrobe,  p.  10,  p.  14. 


X823 


Jesse  S.  Armistead 

b.  1795,  d.  1869.  Began  business  life  as  a  merchant's  clerk 
at  Cartersville,  in  his  native  county,  Cumberland.  Entered 
Hampden  Sidney  1818.  A.  B.,  1823.  The  first  student  on 
the  roll  of  John  Holt  Rice's  theological  school  at  Hampden 
Sidney:  was  a  student  at  that  school  three  years.  Teacher 
at  Cartersville,  Cumberland,  1826-27;  pastor  of  Presbyterian 
church  at  Buckingham  Court  House,  1828-1842.  Pastor, 
Cumberland  Church  (Old  School)  1842-1864.  Agent  in  the 
scholarships  scheme  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1847-1849. 
D.  D.,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1851.  Died  at  his  residence 
in  Cumberland  County. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Work  of  Dr.  Jesse  Armistead  (who  was  besides  a  practical 
farmer  and  a  man  of  strict  business  habits),  is  part  of  the 
philosophical  and  of  the  business  record  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College.  He  was  the  first  and  most  excellent  secretary  (1824- 
1826)  of  the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College  established  in  1824.  He  wrote  well,  both  phy- 
sically and  metaphysically,  and  his  rather  foreign  looking 
hand  is  to  be  traced  also  on  the  fly  leaf  of  a  good  many  books 
he  presented  to  the  Union  Society.  In  1849  Dr.  Armistead 
showed  that  he  had  the  endowment  for  a  field  agent.  In  1854 
the  Board  asked  him  to  take  charge  of  another  campaign — 
to  raise  by  subscription  $30,000.  Within  a  short  time  he 
secured  more  than  that  sum  of  money.  He  knew  the  people 
and  the  state  of  the  country.  Dr.  Armistead  was  very  much 
of  a  land  improver.  When  guano  began  to  come  in,  he  was 
a  liberal  buyer  of  it  for  his  Cumberland  farm.  He  shipped 
in  by  the  Appomattox  batteau  line. 


1823]  235 

Robert  Burwell 

Born  in  Dinwiddie  County  1802,  son  of  Colonel  Armistead 
Burwell,  who  assumed  the  office  of  steward  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College,  about  1820.  Robert  Burwell  graduated  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  in  1823,  and  in  January  1824,  was  one 
of  the  three  students  (Thomas  P.  Hunt  and  Jesse  S.  Armi- 
stead the  others)  with  whom  John  Holt  Rice  began  his  theo- 
logical seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney.  Robert  Burwell  spent 
most  of  his  long  life  in  North  Carolina,  as  minister  and 
teacher,  at  Hillsborough,  Charlotte  and  Raleigh.  He  was 
especially  interested  in  the  education  of  young  women ;  from 
1857  to  1872  was  principal  of  a  school  for  girls  at  Charlotte ; 
and  from  1872  to  1892,  was  in  charge  of  Peace  Institute  at 
Raleigh.  Dr.  Burwell  (D.  D.,  University  of  North  Carolina, 
1882),  died  at  Raleigh  in  1895. 

The  year  before  his  death  Dr.  Burwell  prepared  a  state- 
ment on  the  early  days  of  Union  Seminary.  This  paper  was 
to  have  been  read  by  him  at  the  seventieth  anniversary  of 
the  Seminary,  January  4th,  1894.  He  was  unable  to  attend. 
This  statement,  of  great  interest  locally,  was  printed  in  Union 
Seminary  Magazine,  January,  1894,  pp.  143-155. 

John  Nicholas  Cabell 

b.  1805.  Son  of  Dr.  George  Cabell,  Jr.,  of  Lynchburg. 
Hampden  Sidney,  1820-1823.  Moved  west  and  died,  leaving 
an  only  daughter  who  was  adopted  by  John  Cabell's  brother, 
Dr.  James  L.  Cabell,  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  Howson  Clarke 

Born  in  Halifax  County,  1805;  educated  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney College  (A.  B.,  1823)  ;  the  University  of  Virginia  (1826)  ; 
and  at  Cambridge,  Massachusetts ;  represented  Halifax  Coun- 
ty in  the  Virginia  legislature,  1839-1842;  died  at  his  home 


236  [1823 

'Banister  Lodge,'  1873.  He  was  the  son  of  John  Clarke,  a 
man  of  influence  not  only  in  his  own,  but  in  surrounding 
counties,  a  successful  merchant  and  planter,  the  son  of  "Wil- 
liam Clarke  of  Prince  Edward  County. 


Brown,  p.  327. 


E.  Clopton 


Abner  Clopton,  the  temperance  advocate  (1784-1833),  made 
his  home  in  Charlotte  County  from  about  the  year  1823.  Mr. 
Clopton  was  himself  a  graduate  of  Chapel  Hill,  and  it  is  a 
plausible  guess  that  E.  Clopton,  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  1823  (from  Charlotte  County)  was  his  son.  Abner 
W.  Clopton  was  the  chief  organizer  of  the  Virginia  Temper- 
ance Society,  at  Ash  Camp,  Charlotte  County,  year  1826. 
Ash  Camp  was  about  where  Keysville  now  is. 

Ghastain  Cocke 

Chastain  Cocke  of  Powhatan  is  listed  in  the  1822  Catalogue 
as  a  student  'not  a  candidate  for  a  degree,  but  reciting  with 
the  college  classes.'  It  is  possible  he  was  the  same  as  Chastain 
Cocke,  who  graduated  in  medicine  at  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania in  1824.  If  so,  he  was  the  brother  of  William  Archer 
Cocke  [Hampden  Sidney,  1790],  was  born  in  1802,  and  died 
in  1860. 

Dupuy  Genealogy,  p.  253. 

Thomas  Flournoy 

Probably  a  son  of  David  Flournoy,  brother  of  John  James 
Flournoy  of  "Union  Grove,"  Prince  Edward  County:  and 
steward,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1830-32.  Thomas  Flour- 
noy entered  Hampden  Sidney  early  in  1821,  left  in  1823. 
Then  went  to  Princeton  and  left  in  1826  on  the  death  of  his 
father.  He  settled  in  Brunswick  County,  was  a  farmer  and 
died  in  Brunswick,  near  Lawrenceville. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


1823]  237 

Albert  M.  Gilliam 

About  1842  Albert  M.  Gilliam  of  Lynchburg  was  appointed 
by  President  Tyler  consul  at  San  Francisco,  "upper  Cali- 
fornia." San  Francisco  was  in  1843  a  very  different  place 
from  what  it  is  now,  but  interesting  enough.  Consul  Gilliam 
reached  his  Mexican  post  by  sea,  and  made  notes  of  what  he 
saw  in  the  Spanish  country.  In  1846  he  published  at  Phila- 
delphia, "Travels  in  Mexico  [California  especially]  1843-44." 
455  pp.  This  was  republished  at  Aberdeen,  Scotland  in  1847, 
when  the  Mexican  War  was  the  advertisement.  Somebody 
who  read  the  Aberdeen  edition  (copy  at  Library  of  Congress) 
made  this  note:  "What  awful  long  sentences."  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  Mr.  Gilliam's  writing  is  a  little  hard  to  follow. 

William  Hamersley 

Born  April  12,  1789  in  Prince  Edward  County  ,the  son  of 
William  and  Jane  (Blair)  Hamersley.  Shortly  after  his 
birth,  his  father  removed  to  Campbell  County,  in  the  Hat 
Creek  neighborhood.  He  entered  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1816,  and  graduated.  He  was  already  an  elder  in  the 
Presbyterian  church  when  he  came  to  college.  After  study- 
ing theology  under  Dr.  Hoge,  he  was  settled  as  a  minister  in 
Campbell  County  and  spent  his  life  in  that  calling  in  Camp- 
bell County  and  the  immediate  region.  Mr.  Hamersley  was 
a  grandson  of  Richard  Sankey,  and  therefore  a  great  grand- 
son of  John  Thomson. 

Wilson's  Presbyterian  Almanac  for  1862,  p.  91. 

Matthew  W.  Jackson 

The  Republican  Methodists  were  strong  in  Southside  Vir- 
ginia somewhat  before  and  somewhat  after  1800.  In  1809 
Clement  Read  withdrew  from  that  connection.  In  1822  the 
Rev.  Messrs.  Matthew  W.  Jackson,  Henderson  Lee  and  others, 
ministers  of  the  Republican  Methodist  Church,  met  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Hanover  at  Charlotte  Court  House  and  after  for- 


238  [1823 

malities  took  their  seats  as  members  of  Presbytery.  By  this 
act,  says  Dr.  Poote  [II,  579],  the  Republican  Methodist 
Church  as  a  body,  in  that  part  of  Virginia,  became  extinct. 
At  nearly  the  same  time  Bishop  Ravenscroft  assumed  charge 
of  the  diocese  of  North  Carolina.  He  had  for  some  time  been 
active  as  a  Republican  Methodist  in  Lunenburg. 

The  name  'Matthew  Jackson,  Charlotte  County,'  appears 
on  the  catalogue  for  1822 — Freshman  class.  Mr.  Jackson 
seems  to  have  spent  his  life,  a  long  one,  in  Charlotte  County, 
as  a  teacher  and  preacher,  especially  in  the  Rough  Creek 
neighborhood.     He  was  born  in  1795  and  died  in  1880. 

See  Union  Seminary  Catalogue. 

Allen  D.  Metcalfe 

b.  1797,  d.  1877.  A  native  of  Rutherford  County,  North 
Carolina.  The  year  following  his  graduation  at  Hampden 
Sidney,  1823,  Mr.  Metcalfe  was  advertised  as  Junior  Tutor 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College  {catalogue,  December  1824),  and 
as  Principal  of  the  Academy  at  Lincolnton,  North  Carolina 
(North  Carolina  Schools  and  Academies,  p.  200,  January, 
1824).  January  1826  Mr.  Metcalfe  was  in  charge  of  the 
Academy  at  Charlotte,  North  Carolina,  a  school  in  which  were 
to  be  taught  "in  the  most  approved  manner  the  Latin  and 
Greek  languages,  together  with  all  other  branches  which  enter 
into  a  thorough  and  liberal  education. ' '  After  1828  Mr.  Met- 
calfe was  a  minister — in  the  valley  of  Virginia,  in  Kentucky, 
in  Tennessee,  and  again  in  Kentucky  where  he  died.  During 
his  time  in  Augusta  County,  Virginia,  he  was  for  a  year, 
1835-36,  Tutor  at  Washington  College. 

David  Minge 

Born  Charles  City  County,  1802.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney 1822.  M.  D.  Died  at  Petersburg  1868.  [Dr.  Hooper's 
Manuscript.]  In  the  printed  catalogues  David  Minge  is  set 
down  as  a  member  of  the  Sophomore  class  in  1822,  and  in 


1823]  239 

1826  David  Hinge,  also  of  Charles  City  County,  is  classified 
as  of  the  Freshman  class.  It  seems  hardly  probable  that  these 
two  entries  are  representative  of  the  same  person,  even  by 
the  most  drastic  reclassification. 

We  will  suppose  that  the  earlier  David  Minge  was  the 
memorable  philanthropist  of  the  following  story — "In  1825 
Nathaniel  Binford  of  Charles  City  County  liberated  seven 
slaves  and  sent  them  to  Ohio.  He  had  acted  on  the  example 
of  his  neighbor  David  Minge  who,  aetat.  25,  set  free  eighty- 
seven  slaves  and  had  them  sent  to  Cuba.  He  distributed 
among  them  a  peck  of  silver  dollars  on  sailing  day." 

Ohio  Archaeological   and   Historical   Society  Publications,   vol.   VI, 
p.  275. 

The  Society  of  Inquiry  on  the  subject  of  Missions  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  listed  David  Minge  as  a  member.  So  this  state- 
ment shows  poetic  sequence  at  least. 

Izard  Bacon  Rice 

Born  in  Halifax  County,  July  2nd,  1804;  at  Hampden 
Sidney  1822-1823.  M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsylvania,  1827. 
Settled  first  in  Halifax  County,  then  in  Charlotte  County, 
at  '  South  Isle, '  a  plantation  near  Coles  Ferry.  Dr.  Rice  died 
Sept.  19th,  1865.  He  was  the  father  of  Henry  C.  Rice,  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  1862,  a  member  of  the  Hampden  Sidney  Company 
in  the  Civil  War  and  one  of  its  historians. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Dr.  Rice  lived  on  Staunton  River,  about  eight  miles  above 
John  Randolph's  *  Roanoke'  plantation.  See  his  reminiscences 
of  Mr.  Randolph,  pp.  112-114  of  Powhatan  Bouldin's  book. 
Mr.  Bouldin  also  gives  several  pages  (126-130)  of  very  inter- 
esting observations  on  John  Randolph  by  Henry  Carrington 
(Hampden  Sidney,  1811). 


240  [1823 

Thomas  Skinker 

Born  in  Fauquier  County,  March  20,  1805.  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  1822,  left  1823.  A.  B.,  Union  College,  N.  Y., 
1825 — Phi  Beta  Kappa.  Studied  law  under  Judge  Tucker  at 
Winchester.  Lawyer  and  farmer,  Fauquier  County.  Epis- 
copalian. Died  Oct.  2,  1887,  while  visiting  Saratoga  Springs 
for  his  health. 

Dr.  Mellwaine's  Manuscript,  quoting  Letter  of  Thomas  K.  Skinker 
of  St.  Louis,  a  son  of  Thomas  Skinker. 

Gerard  Briscoe  Stuart 

Born  at  Staunton,  Nov.  27,  1804.  Son  of  Judge  Archibald 
Stuart.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  in  1822,  left  1823.  Farmer, 
Augusta  County.  Many  years  Justice,  county  court.  Mem- 
ber of  the  House  of  Delegates,  1839-1841.  Mr.  Stuart  died 
after  1882. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

John  Brown  Tinsley 

Born  in  Powhatan  County,  June  7,  1804.  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  1820.  Teacher  in  Powhatan  County;  at  Farm- 
ville,  Prince  Edward  County,  &c.  Died  at  Liberty,  Bedford 
County,  Jan.  15,  1872.  Sept.  1833,  Mr.  Tinsley  read  before 
the  Institute  of  Education  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  a 
lecture  'On  the  Qualifications  of  Common  School  Teachers.' 
His  residence  was  then  in  Powhatan. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Robert  D.  Turnbull 

Born  in  Brunswick  County,  Aug.  2,  1804.  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney  1821 ;  A.  B.,  1823.  Lawyer.  Colonel  on  Governor 
Wise's  staff.  Episcopalian.  Died  at  Lawrenceville,  Bruns- 
wick County,  Jan.,  1864. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


1823]  241 

Samuel  L.  Venable 

Born  Charlotte  County,  Jan.  7,  1803.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney  1822;  A.  B.,  1823.  Lawyer  at  Charlotte  Court  House. 
Principal,  girls'  school  at  Clarksville,  Mecklenburg  County, 
1840-1844;  and  Principal,  Oxford,  North  Carolina,  Academy 
for  girls,  1844-1860.  Presbyterian  elder.  Died  at  Cascade, 
Pittsylvania  County,  Virginia,  July  13,  1877. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Achilles  Whitlocke 

Born  in  Halifax  County,  November,  1805.  At  Hampden 
Sidney,  1821-23.  M.  D.  in  Philadelphia.  Farmer  and  physi- 
cian.    Died  at  Huntsville,  Alabama,  in  1847. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


"Jan.  8,  1824.— The  following  gentlemen.  Dr.  John  H.  Rice,  Dr.  Wil- 
liam S.  Morton,  President  Jona:  P.  Cushing,  the  Rev.  James  Marsh, 
Messrs.  Abm.  W.  Venable,  W.  W.  Blauvelt,  Samuel  L.  Venable,  Robert 
Burwell,  Thomas  P.  Hunt,  William  H.  Clarke,  and  Jesse  S.  Armistead, 
met  at  President  Cushing 's  room  for  the  purpose  of  considering  the 
expediency  of  instituting  a  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  at  this 
place.  After  a  free  and  full  expression  of  the  sentiments  and  feelings 
of  those  present,  in  reference  to  the  object  of  the  meeting,  it  was  agreed 
that  such  a  Society  should  be  organized.  Dr.  Rice,  President  Cushing 
and  Mr.  Marsh  were  appointed  a  committee  to  draw  up  a  constitution 
for  the  contemplated  Society,  to  be  submitted  at  a  meeting  to  be  held 
on  the  16th  instant. 

Jan.  16,  1824. — The  same  gentlemen  as  above  mentioned,  with  the 
exception  of  Mr.  Abram  W.  Venable,  met  this  evening  at  President  Cush- 
ing 's  room  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  the  proposed  Society.  Dr. 
W.  S.  Morton  was  appointed  chairman,  and  W.  W.  Blauvelt,  secretary 
of  the  meeting.  The  committee  appointed  at  the  last  meeting  to  prepare 
a  constitution  made  their  report,  which  was  accepted  and  is  as  follows: 

In  performing  the  business  entrusted  to  us  as  your  committee,  we  have 
been  guided  chiefly  by  the  general  views  exhibited  at  our  previous  meet- 
ing. Our  object  has  been  to  combine  as  far  as  possible  in  the  constitu- 
tion of  a  single  body  the  advantages  of  personal  improvement  with  those 
of  public  influence.  We  have  aimed  in  the  ordinary  meetings  of  the 
Society  to  secure  the  free  and  unrestrained  feelings  and  habits  of  a 
literary  club;  to  give  scope  and  encouragement  for  the  display  of  intel- 
lectual powers  of  all  kinds;  and  to  cherish  a  generous  enthusiasm  in  the 


242  [1824 

pursuit  of  excellence.  In  the  annual  meetings  and  exercises,  and  in  the 
more  extended  form  of  the  Society,  we  would  wish  it  to  assume  the 
character  before  the  public  of  an  extended  literary  association,  and  to 
maintain  an  eminence  that  shall  do  honour  to  the  literature  of  the  State. 
It  is  our  object,  in  short,  to  combine  the  means  of  awakening  and  sus- 
taining among  ourselves  a  spirit  of  greater  energy  and  enterprise  in  our 
pursuits,  to  place  before  those  who  are  following  in  the  paths  which  we 
have  trodden  an  elevated  standard  of  literary  attainment,  and  to  diffuse 
abroad,  as  far  as  the  influence  of  the  Society  may  extend,  liberal  and 
enlightened  views,  as  well  as  a  generous  spirit  of  intellectual  improve- 
ment. We  are  perfectly  aware,  however,  that  for  accomplishing  these 
objects,  the  most  essential  requisites  are  to  be  sought  in  the  character 
and  feelings  of  the  individual  members. 

JOHN  H.  EICE, 
JAMES  MAKSH, 
JONA:  P.  CUSHING, 

Committee. 

The  following  subject  was  selected  for  discussion  at  the  next  meeting: 
'The  Best  Means  of  Exciting  a  Higher  Literary  Spirit  in  Virginia.' 
Jesse  S.  Armistead  is  to  read  a  dissertation  on  the  subject." 

[Minute  Book,  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College.] 


1824 


James  C.  Anthony 

"We  will  suppose  that  James  C.  Anthony's  middle  name 
was  Couch,  and  that  he  was  a  brother  of  Mrs.  Margaret  Couch 
Anthony  Cabell,  author  of  that  very  fine  book,  ' '  Sketches  and 
Recollections  of  Lynchburg,  by  the  Oldest  Inhabitant." 
Lynchburg  sent  a  good  many  students  to  Hampden  Sidney 
College  before  1825.  Jesse  Burton  Harrison  graduated  at 
Hampden  Sidney  in  1821 ;  his  brother,  Robert  Jordan  Harri- 
son was  a  student  at  the  college.  We  will  take  it  for  granted 
that  their  near  relation,  Christopher  Anthony  of  Lynchburg, 
had  a  son  James  Couch  Anthony  whom  he  sent  to  Hampden 
Sidney  during  the  catalogue  years  1822  and  1823.  Christo- 
pher Anthony  was  born  in  Bedford  County  in  1776.  He  came 
of  a  Quaker  family,  and  was  himself  for  some  years  a  member 
of  the  Society  of  Friends.  At  first  a  merchant  and  then  a 
lawyer,  Christopher  Anthony  was  long  a  conspicuous  figure 
in  Lynchburg,  a  good  and  wise  man,  ' '  his  native  capacity  was 
of  the  highest  order,  and  in  intuitive  knowledge  of  men,  that 
best  of  knowledge,  he  had  no  superior." 

Sketches   and   Becollections   of   Lynchburg,   pp.    38-55. 

Peyton  Randolph  Berkeley 

b.  1805,  d.  1871.  Son  of  William  Berkeley  of  "Oakland," 
Prince  Edward  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney,  1820. 
A.  B.,  1824.  Second  honor.  M.  D.,  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, 1828.  Teacher.  Practitioner  many  years  in  Prince 
Edward  County.  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  many 
years.  Presbyterian  elder  in  college  church.  Captain  of  Cav- 
alry, C.  S.  A.,  when  over  fifty  years  old.  Dr.  Berkeley  lived 
at  Prince  Edward  Court  House,  the  present  hamlet  of 
Worsham. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


244 


[1824 


It  is  fitting  at  this  point  to  give  a  summary  of  the  students  from 
Hampden  Sidney  College  who  followed  medical  studies  at  the  University 
of  Pennsylvania.  This  list  has  been  hurriedly  prepared  and  might  with- 
out much  trouble  be  a  good  deal  extended.  Not  to  skip  any  decade,  the 
name  of  Goodridge  Wilson  (1797),  a  Trustee  of  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege, has  been  included.  'The  Virginia  Doctors'  were  celebrated  in 
Philadelphia  for  years:  many  of  them  were  excellent  students,  and  many 
of  the  excellent  students  were  very  rowdy.  This  list  has  been  carried  to 
1836  and  John  W.  Draper  for  the  imposing  effect: — 

Chastain  Cocke 
Jonathan  P.  Gilliam 
William  W.  Oliver 
Joel  W.  Dupuy 
George  Penn 
Izard   B.   Eice 
Albert  G.  Smith 
Eobert  H.  Turnbull 
Joel  Watkins 
Peyton  R.  Berkeley 
Richard  Garland 
George  Fitzgerald 
Nathaniel  G.  Friend 
Thomas  D.  Mutter 
Thomas  P.  Nash 
Anderson  Wade 
John  W.  Wooldridge 
Thomas  H.  Venable 
Elbert  C.  Wade 
John  B.  Harvie 
William  Glenn  Craghead 
Richard   J.    H.    Hatchett 
George  P.  Holman 
William  F.  Quenichet 
Nathaniel   A.   Venable 
John  W.  Draper 


1790 

George  Cabell 

1824 

1797 

Goodridge  Wilson 

1808 

Samuel  D.  Leake 

1825 

Robert  Mayo 

1827 

1809 

John  P.  Mettauer 
Addison  Waddell 

1810 

Joseph  Watkins 

1811 

Ashley  Davis 
Paul  C.  Venable 

1812 

Thomas  Allen 

1828 

Marcus  C.  Buck 

1830 

William  J.  Dupuy 

William  S.  Morton 

1831 

1813 

James  W.  Hunt 
John  C.   Meredith 
Mann  Page 

1814 

John  W.  Johnston 

1816 

Robert   G.   Moseley 

1832 

Miles  S.  Watkins 

1834 

1817 

James  W.  Paxton 

1818 

[William  Dunbar  of 

Mississippi] 
James  H.  Lacy 
Samuel  V.  Watkins 

1835 

1820 

Landon  C.  Rives 

1823 

William  Hamlin 

1836 

John  Breckenridge  Cabell 

Son  of  Dr.  George  Cabell,  Sr.,  of  Lynchburg.  At  Hampden 
Sidney,  1821-24.  John  B.  Cabell  was  a  physician;  removed 
from  Lynchburg  to  Lewisburg,  West  Virginia,  and  died  after 
1879. 

Brown,  p.   535. 


William  B.  Chittenden 

From  Cayuga,  N.  Y.,  (printed  catalogues,  1822-1824),  Wil- 
liam B.  Chittenden  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 
1824.    Before  1846  he  was  Secretary  of  the  James  River  and 


1824]  245 

Kanawha  Canal  Company,  and  on  the  resignation  of  Joseph 
C.  Cabell,  was  chosen  president  of  the  company.  John  Y. 
Mason  was  president  in  1850.  It  seems  strange  that  Mr. 
Chittenden's  later  career  is  not  a  matter  of  public  record. 
Apparently  he  had  died  before  1856.  The  year  after  his 
graduation  he  was  Tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  and 
entered  his  brother  (we  will  suppose),  Joseph  Chittenden,  Jr., 
as  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

John  H.  Clarke 

Probably  the  son  of  John  Clarke  of  Prince  Edward  County, 
member  of  the  House  of  Delegates,  1817-1822;  son  of  John 
Clarke  of  Prince  Edward,  member  of  the  House  of  Delegates, 
1784-1787.  The  Clarkes  were  early  established  in  Prince  Ed- 
ward County  as  merchants  in  the  Sandy  River  Church  neigh- 
borhood. John  H.  Clarke,  A.  B.,  1824,  is  marked  with  an 
asterisk,  as  dead,  in  the  General  Catalogue  of  1857. 

Nathaniel  Macon  Eaton 

Thomas  Eaton  and  his  brother  Nathaniel,  of  Warrenton, 
North  Carolina,  came  to  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1823 — 
the  one  entering  Sophomore,  the  other,  Freshman.  The  state- 
ment is  made  that  Nathaniel  Eaton  died  on  his  way  home 
from  college.  This  item  may  have  been  drawn  from  Dr. 
Mcllwaine's  questionnaire:  it  is  not  on  Dr.  Hooper's  manu- 
script. 

Travis  H.  Epes 

Born  in  Nottoway  County.  Hampden  Sidney,  1822-24. 
University  of  Virginia,  1826.  Whig  leader  of  Nottoway. 
House  of  Delegates,  1833-35,  1853.  Opposed  the  Civil  War. 
It  is  said  that  Colonel  Epes  was  invited  by  Lincoln  to  Rich- 
mond in  April  1865,  for  conference  on  the  reconstruction  of 
the  State.  Trustee,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1848-1870. 
Died  about  1880. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


246  [1824 

Thomas  Tabb  Giles 

b.  1803,  d.  1883.  Son  of  Gov.  William  B.  Giles.  Entered 
Hampden  Sidney,  1820.  A.  B.,  1824.  Lawyer;  distinguished 
in  chancery  practice  at  the  Richmond  bar.  For  many  years 
chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Virginia  His- 
torical Society  Died  at  Richmond.  In  1826,  Thomas  T.  Giles 
was  his  father 's  messenger  to  Henry  Clay,  bearing  a  letter  that 
was  tantamount  to  a  challenge.  The  letter  was  proffered  in 
the  presence  of  William  S.  Archer.  Mr.  Clay  declined  to 
receive  the  communication  saying  that  he  "could  not  recog- 
nize Mr.  Thomas  T.  Giles  as  an  organ  free  from  objection." 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 
Brock,  Virginians,  pp.   154-156. 

James  H.  Hamlett 

James  H.  Hamlett  of  Campbell  County;  at  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, 1822-24;  listed  in  the  catalogue  of  Union  Seminary  as 
a  theological  student  towards  the  end  of  the  dim  period  before 
1824;  and  assigned  to  St.  Louis  in  the  Union  Society  Cata- 
logue ;  was  apparently  a  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  church. 

David  R[ice]  Mitchell 

The  entry,  'David  R.  Mitchell,  Bedford  County,'  appears 
on  the  printed  catalogues  for  1823  and  1824.  November  26, 
1825,  the  Union  Society  in  its  minutes  made  reference  to  cer- 
tain books  bequeathed  the  society  on  his  death  bed  by  David 
R.  Mitchell. 

Charles  L.  Mosby 

b.  1810,  Powhatan  County.  At  Hampden  Sidney  College 
about  1824:  University  of  Virginia,  1827-1829,  and  the  first 
graduate  of  the  school  of  law  at  the  University.  Settled  for 
the  practice  of  the  law  at  Lynchburg.  Member  of  the  legis- 
lature several  terms,  representing  Campbell  County.  Mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Visitors  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 
Died  at  Lynchburg  in  1879. 


1824]  247 

Charles  Mosby  having  been  the  first  law  graduate  of  the 
University  of  Virginia,  it  is  fitting  to  append  here  a  brief 
statement  showing  the  support  given  by  Hampden  Sidney 
College  to  the  University  of  Virginia  during  the  salad  days 
of  the  University. 

The  plan  of  this  compilation  fits  in  well  with  an  era  in 
the  history  of  education  in  Virginia  and  the  south — the  period 
covered  is  that  from  the  beginning  of  the  war  of  the  Revo- 
lution to  the  opening  of  the  University  of  Virginia.  There- 
fore it  is  of  interest  to  note  the  students  from  Hampden 
Sidney  College  who  were  in  attendance  at  the  University  of 
Virginia  during  its  early  years.  This  list  is  not  complete. 
It  is  carried  to  1833  and  Robert  G.  Branch,  who  was  for  some 
time  a  professor  at  Hampden  Sidney  College: — 

1825     Philip  A.  Boiling  1827-28     William  Daniel 

Wilson  Miles  Cary  George  E.  Dabney 

William  Ballard  Preston  Kobert  T.  Hubard 

Albert  G.  Ward  William  G.  Jones 

1825-26     Champe  Carter  Charles  L.  Mosby 

Archibald  D.  Glenn  Alexander  Eives 

Edmund  W.   Hubard  Charles  L.  Thomas 

Charles  H.  C.  Preston  1829     William   CampbeU  Scott 

Thomas  Pemberton  William  H.  Perry 

John   H.  Walker  Benjamin  J.  Walker 

1826-27     Charles  T.   Beale  1830     Ethelbert  A.  Coleman 

James  C.  Bruce  Patrick  H.  Elcan 

William  Lewis  Cabell  Hugh  A.  Garland 

William  H.  Clarke  John  B.  Harvie 

Benedict  Crump  Thomas  W.  Ligon 

Travis  H.  Epes  1832     John  H.  Christian 

Eichard  Garland  Thomas  Withers 

Hugh  E.  Pleasants  1833     Eobert  G.  Branch 

George  B.  Skillern  [Professor,  Hampden 

Charles  T.  Taylor  Sidney  Coll.,  1834-1846] 
John  P.  Willcox 

William  Madison  Peyton 

b.  1805,  d.  1868.  There  is  a  memoir  at  large  of  Colonel  Wil- 
liam M.  Peyton,  in  which  nothing  is  said  about  his  being  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  But  it  seems  probable 
that  he  was.  William  M.  Peyton,  son  of  John  Howe  Peyton, 
at  the  age  of  twelve  was  sent  to  Fuller's  school  in  Staunton. 
He  was  there  four  years,  matriculating  in  1822  at  Princeton. 


248  [1824 

His  character  was  early  formed,  and  at  Princeton  he  was 
noted  for  close  study,  sobriety,  and  great  influence  among 
his  fellows.  His  health  began  to  suffer.  He  came  home  at  the 
end  of  his  second  year  uncertain  whether  to  keep  on  at  college 
or  not.  The  doctor  advised  him  to  go  to  a  northern  college, 
and  he  entered  at  Yale  in  1824.  So  much  for  the  facts  of  the 
biography.  Catalogues  at  Hampden  Sidney  were  at  the  first 
issued  soon  after  the  opening  of  the  winter  term  in  November. 
The  catalogue  dated  December,  1824,  lists  "William  M.  Pey- 
ton, Staunton,"  as  an  irregular  student.  It  is  likely  that 
after  signing  up  at  Hampden  Sidney,  young  Mr.  Peyton  with- 
drew and  resumed  his  studies  at  Yale.  Colonel  Peyton  was 
a  man  of  means,  represented  his  adopted  county  (Botetourt) 
in  the  legislature  a  term  or  two,  and  was  in  general  a  man 
rather  typical  of  the  old  times — hospitable,  cultivated,  with 
plenty  of  sound  common  sense  and  a  trifle  Quixotic.  He  was 
a  Whig,  and  a  Union  Man. 

See  Memoir  of  William  Madison  Peyton  of  Eoanoke.     By  John 
Lewis  Peyton.    London  (John  Wilson,  92  Great  Eussell  Street)  1873. 

John  Smith  Preston 

b.  1809,  d.  1881.  Son  of  Francis  Preston  of  Washington 
County,  and  first  cousin  of  William  Ballard  Preston.  Grad- 
uated at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1824;  was  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  1825-26,  and  then  for  awhile  at  the  Har- 
vard law  school.  Settled  for  practice  at  Abingdon,  Va.,  but 
having  married  a  daughter  of  General  Wade  Hampton,  the 
elder,  removed  to  Columbia,  South  Carolina.  Engaged  for 
several  years  in  sugar  planting  in  Louisiana,  but  also  devoted 
much  time  to  the  collection  of  paintings  and  sculptures,  aiding 
artists  liberally,  notably  Hiram  Powers.  Mr.  Preston  was  an 
orator.  His  speech  of  welcome  to  the  Palmetto  regiment  on 
its  return  from  the  Mexican  War  gained  him  a  wide  reputa- 
tion. He  was  a  pronounced  secessionist,  was  chairman  of  the 
South  Carolina  delegation  to  the  Charleston  convention,  and 
in  February,  1861,  as  commissioner  to  Virginia,  made  perhaps 


1824]  249 

»  . 

his  most  celebrated  speech.  In  the  war,  at  first  on  the  staff  of 
Gen.  Beauregard,  he  was  transferred  to  the  conscript  depart- 
ment with  the  rank  of  Brigadier.  After  the  war,  he  went  to 
England  and  lived  there  several  years.  During  the  recon- 
struction period,  Gen.  Preston  delivered  an  address  at  the 
University  of  Virginia,  on  the  right  of  secession,  which  was 
much  criticized  by  the  party  in  power. 

Appleton's   Cyclopaedia. 

William  Ballard  Preston 

b.  1805,  d.  1862.  Son  of  Governor  James  Preston,  (gov- 
ernor of  Virginia,  1816-1819),  of  "Smithfield,"  Montgomery 
County.  William  B.  Preston  was  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  three  years,  graduating  in  1824.  In  1825  he  was  at 
the  University  of  Virginia.  He  took  up  the  law  as  a  pro- 
fession, and  succeeded.  He  was  early  in  politics  as  a  Whig, 
and  is  said  never  to  have  lost  an  election;  represented  his 
county  in  the  House  of  Delegates  a  term  or  two,  beginning 
in  1830,  and  was  in  the  State  Senate  four  terms,  1840-1844. 
In  1846  he  went  to  Congress,  and  was  chosen  Secretary  of  the 
Navy  by  President  Taylor,  resigning  on  General  Taylor's 
death.  In  1858  he  was  sent  by  government  to  France,  to 
negotiate  for  the  establishment  of  a  line  of  steamers  between 
the  port  of  Norfolk  and  Havre.  The  Civil  War  blocked  the 
plan.  Mr.  Preston  stood  out  for  the  Union  as  long  as  he 
could,  both  in  the  Virginia  Convention  of  1861  and  in  the 
Provisional  Congress.  He  was  elected  a  Senator  from  Vir- 
ginia in  the  first  Confederate  Congress,  and  died  shortly  after 
at  his  home  "  Smithfield, "  Montgomery  County. 

H.  D.  Warwick 

Mrs.  Cabell,  in  her  "Recollections  of  Lynchburg"  (p.  235) 
says  something  of  Major  William  Warwick  of  Amherst  Coun- 
ty, a  native  of  Nelson  or  of  Buckingham : — "Major  Warwick's 
integrity  and  uprightness  were  so  conspicuous,  and  so  un- 


250  [1824 

swerving  was  he  in  the  prosecution  of  what  he  deemed  the 
right,  that  many  were  heard  to  say  that  these  qualities  in- 
vested him  with  a  moral  sublimity. ' '  Of  his  large  family  were 
John  M.  Warwick  of  Lynchburg  (whose  daughter  was  married 
to  Judge  William  Daniel)  ;  Messrs.  Corbin  and  Abram  War- 
wick of  Richmond  [note  Robert  and  James  Warwick  of  Rich- 
mond, students  at  Hampden  Sidney,  1826] ;  Daniel  Warwick 
of  Baltimore,  &c.  Mrs.  Cabell's  book  was  published  in  1858. 
Was  Daniel  Warwick,  of  Baltimore,  H.  D.  Warwick? — a  stu- 
dent at  Hampden  Sidney,  from  Lynchburg,  1822-1824. 

The  firm  of  Warwick  and  Claggett  was  about  1830,  very 
conspicuous  in  the  tobacco  trade.  The  firm  had  headquarters 
at  London ;  Mr.  Warwick  had  started  in  business  at  Richmond, 
and  was  in  close  touch  with  Lewis  Rogers,  a  great  Virginia 
merchant  of  those  days. 

See  Old  Merchants  of  New  York,  vol.  II. 

John  Archer  Scott 

Born  in  Prince  Edward  County;  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege, 1823-24.  John  Archer  Scott  was  a  notable  man  in  his 
time  for  business  ability,  as  farmer  and  in  general.  His  home 
was  on  Bush  River,  Prince  Edward  County,  fine  land  which 
has  been  well  farmed  for  a  number  of  years,  before  and  after 
the  great  Civil  War. 

Joel  Watkins 

Son  of  Henry  A.  Watkins  of  Charlotte  County.  M.  D., 
University  of  Pennsylvania,  1827.  Dr.  Joel  Watkins  prac- 
ticed in  Charlotte  County. 

Samuel  V.  Watkins 

Son  of  William  M.  Watkins  (1791).    Born  Charlotte  Coun- 
ty, Oct.  19,  1807.     Entered  Hampden  Sidney,  1820.     A.  B., 
1824.    University  of  Virginia.    Farmer  and  merchant.    Pres- 
byterian elder.     Died  at  Petersburg,  March  18,  1872. 
Dr.  Hooper 's  Manuscript. 


1824]  251 

William  Spotswood  White 

b.  1800,  d.  1873.  Son  of  William  White  of  Hanover  County. 
William  S.  White  went  to  school  at  Washington-Henry  Aca- 
demy (an  old  established  school  near  his  home)  ;  then  to  a 
school  in  the  slashes  of  Hanover;  and  then  to  John  Kirkpat- 
rick  in  Manchester.  A  cousin  of  his,  a  member  of  Congress 
from  Florida,  said  to  him  once,  " Don't  vegetate  here  on  the 
Chickahominy.  Resolve  to  be  something."  At  the  age  of 
eighteen,  William  S.  White  resolved  to  be ;  at  least  to  be  edu- 
cated at  a  college.  But  he  had  no  money,  so  he  taught  school 
and  made  enough  money  to  give  himself  a  year  and  a  half  at 
Hampden  Sidney,  beginning  with  January,  1819.  He  taught 
again  (in  Richmond)  and  came  to  college  again.  At  the  end 
of  his  Sophomore  year  his  money  was  once  more  scant  in  the 
purse.  He  bullied  his  guardian  into  giving  him  a  horse,  which 
he  rode  to  college  and  sold  to  Colonel  Burwell  for  enough  to 
settle  the  board  bill  for  two  years.  Having  graduated  in  1824, 
he  taught  school  again — in  Farmville — and  began  studies 
looking  to  the  ministry.  From  1820  John  Holt  Rice  had  been 
virtually  his  foster  father.  After  two  years  at  Union  Semi- 
nary, William  S.  White  began  his  work  as  a  minister,  and 
became  one  of  the  best  known  men  in  his  church — a  man  of 
intellect,  and  humor,  and  piety,  and  what  is  called  charm  of 
personality.  For  many  years  Dr.  White  was  pastor  of  the 
Presbyterian  church  at  Lexington,  Virginia. 

See  Autobiography  of  William  S.  White,  pp.  1-43. 


1824.  July  2.— Building  Committee  of  Board  of  Trustees  to  settle  the 
accounts  of  workmen  for  work  done  on  the  New  College  building,  and  to 
receive  the  work  if  they  think  proper  [Messrs.  Phaup  and  Perry,  con- 
tractors]. John  H.  Eice  and  Henry  E.  Watkins  added  to  the  committee 
to  secure  officers  of  College — such  characters  to  be  secured  as  will  be 
qualified  to  fill  the  office  of  Professors,  should  the  Board  at  their  general 
meeting  in  September  next  appoint  Professors. 

1824.  Sept.  23-24.— Keport  of  Committee  to  revise  and  arrange  the 
course  of  studies: — 


252  [1824 


Academy  attached  to  College 

Adam's  Latin  Grammar;  Corderius;  Epitome  Historise  Sacrae;  Latin 
Tutor;  Caesar's  Commentaries;  Virgil  and  Latin  Prosody;  Sallust; 
Cicero's  Orations. 

Hackenberg's  Greek  Grammar,  by  Goodrich;  Greek  Delectus;  Jacob's 
Greek  Eeader;  Dalzel's  Collectanea  Graeca  Minora,  and  Greek  Prosody; 
Neilson's  Greek  Exercises,  and  Knappius'  Greek  Testament. 

Lempriere's  Classical  Dictionary,  Tooke's  Pantheon,  and  Adam's 
Eoman  Antiquities  to  be  consulted  and  studied  so  that  the  student  may 
explain  all  Classic  allusions. 

Murray's  English  Grammar,  Webber's  Arithmetic,  Elements  of  Geog- 
raphy and  Ancient  History. 

The  students  are  to  perform  such  exercises  in  elocution  and  composi- 
tion as  the  Preceptor  may  direct. 

College. 

Each  class  has  two  studies  and  a  daily  recitation  in  each  study,  except 
the  Senior  Class. 

Eresh.  Class — Winter  Session 

1.  Cambridge  Course  of  Mathematics — Lacroix's  Arithmetic,  Euler's 
Algebra,  Legendre's  Geometry  commenced. 

2.  Cicero's  orations  reviewed,  Livy,  Graeca  Majora  Vol.  1st — the  his- 
torians Herodotus  and  Xenophon.     Composition  and  Declamation. 

Summer  Session. 

1.  Legendre's  Geometry  completed;  Graeca  Majora,  2nd  vol. — Homer 
and  the  Minor  Poets;  Horace's  Odes,  and  Greek  and  Latin  Prosody., 

2.  English  Grammar,  Murray's  8vo.  vol.;  Blair's  Lectures  on  Bhe- 
toric ;  and  Exercises  in  elocution.  Latin  and  Greek  Exercises,  and  Eoman 
Antiquities  continued  through  the  year. 

Sophomore  Class — Winter  Session 

1.  Hedge's  Logic,  Morse's  Geography,  8vo.  vol.,  Tytler's  Elements 
of  History  and  Chronology. 

2.  Graeca  Majora — Thucidydes,  Lysias,  Isocrates,  and  Demosthenes; 
Tacitus.     Declamation  and  Composition. 

Summer   Session 

1.  Lacroix's  Algebra;  Analytical  Geometry  commenced;  Plane  and 
Spherical  Trigonometry  and  Algebra  applied  to  Geometry. 

2.  Excerpta  Latina — Quinctilian  and  Cicero,  Graeca  Majora — Diony- 
sius,  Longinus,  and  Aristotle. 

Translations  from  English  into  Latin  and  Greek  through  the  year. 
Declamation;   compositions  every  four  weeks  through  the  year. 


JOHN   HOLT   RICE 


1824]  253 


Junior   Class — Winter   Session. 

1.  Chemistry  with  experiments  and  illustrations.  Grseca  Majora — 
Aristotle,  Sophocles,  and  Euripides;   Horace. 

2.  Algebra  applied  to  Conic  Sections;  Topography,  or  the  applica- 
tion of  Geometry  to  Projections;  Dialling;  Mensuration  of  Heights  and 
Distances;  Navigation;  Nautical  Astronomy;  Surveying;  Levelling,  &c; 
Fluxians;  Composition  and  Declamation. 

Summer   Session. 

1.  Enfield's  Natural  Philosophy — Mechanics;  Pneumatics;  Hydrosta- 
tics;  Magnetism;   Electricity;    and  Optics. 

2.  Cicero's  Philosophical  Works;  Grseca  Majora — Xenophon's  Memo- 
rabilia, Plato  and  Aristotle.     Compositions  in  Latin  and  Greek. 

Declamation;  Composition  in  English  every  three  weeks  through  the 
year. 

Senior   Class — Winter   Session. 

1.  Stewart's  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  1st  Vol.,  Campbell's  Philosophy 
of  Ehetoric;  Paley's  Moral  and  Political  Philosophy;   Astronomy. 

2.  Eeviews — Mathematics  and  the  Latin  and  Greek  Classics. 

Summer   Session. 

1.  Stewart's  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  2nd  Vol.;  Chemistry  and  its 
applications;  Mineralogy;  Geology;  Laws  of  Nature  and  Nations,  by 
Vattel. 

2.  Eeviews — Natural  Philosophy  and  Astronomy.  Paley's  Evidences 
once  a  week  through  the  year.  Lectures  are  given  on  the  most  important 
subjects  of  the  course. 

Dissertations  every  two  weeks;  orations  every  four  weeks;  and  foren- 
sics  every  eight  weeks  through  the  year. 

The  members  of  each  class  are  required  to  declaim  in  public  once  a 
month;  the  Senior  Class  to  pronounce  orations  of  their  own  composition. 

Private  instruction  will  be  given  in  the  Oriental  and  Modern  Lan- 
guages. The  Eev.  James  Marsh  was  elected  the  Professor  of  Languages 
and  Belles  Lettres. 


1825 


Dr.  Rice  and  Mr.  Cushing 

This  caption,  Dr.  Rice  and  Mr.  Cushing,  should  be  that  of 
a  stout  volume.  Dr.  Rice  was  a  thorough  Virginian,  one  of 
the  most  considerable  of  Virginians.  Mr.  Cushing,  whose  life 
was  strangely  bound  up  with  the  life  of  John  Holt  Rice,  was 
a  New  Englander,  but  also  a  Virginian  and  a  very  consider- 
able Virginian.  A  relation  of  the  careers  of  those  two  men 
might  be  framed  on  a  rather  large  scale.  It  is  enough  to  say 
here  that  by  the  work  of  those  men  Hampden  Sidney  took 
on  the  form  it  still  keeps  a  good  deal  and  kept  wholly  for 
about  seventy-five  years. 

John  Holt  Rice  was  born  in  Bedford  County  at  the  outset 
of  the  active  Revolution,  in  1777.  He  had  affiliations  with  the 
Church  of  England,  else  he  could  hardly  have  been  the  Vir- 
ginian that  he  was.  But  also  he  was  a  distant  connection  of 
Davies,  and  a  distant  connection  of  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith. 
He  was  trained  by  William  Graham  at  Liberty  Hall;  found 
his  way  back  east  (his  father  had  come  from  Hanover)  in 
the  capacity  of  tutor  to  a  family  on  James  River;  came  to 
Hampden  Sidney  by  the  merest  chance  when  the  college  was 
nearly  extinct ;  married  soon  after  in  the  neighborhood ;  and 
by  the  time  he  was  twenty-five  had  so  schooled  himself  and 
had  looked  so  well  about  him  at  his  world  that  he  had  ideas, 
purpose,  and  a  practical  sense  of  adaptation.  For  instance, 
there  was  not  much  of  a  library  at  Hampden  Sidney  when 
John  Holt  Rice  came  to  the  place.  He  wanted  books  himself, 
and  knew  that  those  about  him  wanted  books.  The  college 
could  buy  no  books.  Tutor  Rice  joined  the  Union  Society,  or 
rather,  re-established  the  Union  Society,  and  persuaded  his 
fellows  to  begin  buying  books.  The  college  library  today  is 
greatly  the  result  of  that  Rice  plan  of  1802.  And  further, 
Tutor  Rice,  with  his  colleague  Alexander,  went  out  into  the 


1825]  255 

neighborhood  and  did  something  to  get  the  desultory  readers 
interested  in  setting  up  a  Prince  Edward  Library  Company. 
Rice,  Alexander  and  Speece,  the  three  clerks,  discussed  among 
themselves  affairs  of  the  church  and  of  the  State.  They  agreed 
that  the  region  they  were  in  needed  religious  periodicals — 
and  Alexander  and  Rice  (we  are  not  certain  of  Speece) 
thought  that  the  vogue  of  training  ministers  by  apprentice- 
ship to  other  ministers  might  be  improved  upon.  Very  soon 
after,  John  Holt  Rice  was  busy  in  the  neighborhood  getting 
subscriptions  towards  a  sort  of  theological  seminary  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney;  and  not  long  afterwards  Alexander  was  moving 
towards  a  theological  seminary  at  Princeton.  By  1805  Speece 
had  his  religious  journal  (Virginia  Religious  Magazine)  ;  a 
few  years  later  Alexander  was  the  instigator  of  a  religious 
journal  at  Philadelphia;  and  with  1815,  almost  at  the  first 
opportunity,  Rice  began  publishing  his  religious  journal. 
John  Holt  Rice  was  not  a  man  to  sit  around  and  wait  for 
something  to  turn  up.  From  1804,  when  he  left  Hampden 
Sidney,  until  1812,  when  he  went  to  Richmond,  he  was  very 
active  as  preacher  and  teacher  in  Charlotte  County;  and  it 
was  he,  largely,  that  did  what  was  done  in  securing  the  Hoge 
Theological  Seminary  for  Hampden  Sidney.  He  was  chosen 
a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege in  1807,  and  from  that  time  on  kept  his  eye  particularly 
on  the  curriculum. 

During  the  year  1812  John  Holt  Rice  left  Charlotte  County 
for  Richmond.  His  friend,  Archibald  Alexander,  had  come 
very  near  drawing  him  away  to  Philadelphia.  Mr.  Rice  was 
growing  tired  of  his  school  keeping  as  a  necessary  concomitant 
of  his  many  works  as  a  minister  in  Charlotte  County.  But 
in  1812  in  the  territory,  as  between  the  country  and  the  town 
(even  the  town  of  Richmond),  the  country  was  preferable. 
John  Holt  Rice  went  to  Richmond — a  little  uncertain  whether 
he  might  not  have  to  continue  school  keeping — because  he 
was  regardful  both  of  his  own  future  and  that  of  his  church ; 
he  thought  Richmond  would  be  a  good  centre  of  operations. 
He  followed  Dr.  Witherspoon's  notion  about  the  wisdom  of 


256  [1825 

moving  on  when  a  good  opportunity  seemed  to  offer,  and  he 
made  no  mistake.  His  ten  years  at  Richmond  were  the  best 
years  of  his  life.  He  was  occupied,  interested,  and  palpably 
useful.  He  preached  as  an  evangelical;  edited  his  magazines 
as  a  man  of  sound  common  sense  desirous  of  all  reasonable 
progress  in  the  State ;  was  afforded  the  means  of  travel  and 
of  knowing  the  country,  south  and  north;  and  so,  shortly 
before  he  left  Richmond,  was  offered  the  presidency  of  Prince- 
ton College.  But  the  more  he  went  about  the  country  and 
thought  over  what  he  saw,  the  more  he  was  convinced  that 
the  native  talent  of  his  own  State  should  have  a  better  chance 
of  development  at  home.  He  gave  himself  up  to  the  business 
of  working  for  the  propagation  of  knowledge  and  of  religion 
within  his  own  immediate  territory.  Naturally  all  this  made 
him  within  a  few  years  after  1812,  the  director  of  the  Pres- 
byterian movement  in  Virginia. 

John  Holt  Rice  believed  thoroughly  that  the  well  instructed 
minister  of  the  church,  devoted  to  his  work,  should  be  the 
most  powerful  agent  in  the  disciplining  and  upbuilding  of 
the  community.  Therefore  he  began  narrowing  his  endeavors, 
became  an  advocate  for  a  distinct  Presbyterian  Theological 
Seminary  in  the  region,  carried  his  programme  through,  and 
in  1823  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  institution  to  be  estab- 
lished in  fact  (by  him)  at  Hampden  Sidney.  A  man  worlds 
and  works,  gets  his  ideas  realized  in  a  way,  is  sorely  put  about 
in  the  process,  and  is  often  enough  sorry  he  had  not  kept 
hands  off  and  let  things  go  on  as  they  were.  Dr.  Rice  estab- 
lished his  seminary  and  was  disappointed.  His  last  years 
were  full  of  cares  and  worry.  He  missed  his  life  as  a  public 
man  at  Richmond.  He  found  that  being  a  specialist,  and 
an  executive,  was  a  dismally  vexed  business,  the  more  so  if 
begun  late.  He  died  young,  in  1831.  But  he  had  carried 
through  his  programme,  had  proved  himself  a  man  and  a 
Christian,  and  must  be  remembered  as  a  Virginian  of  many 
virtues  and  great  good  will  at  a  very  critical  time  in  the 
history  of  the  community. 


1825]  257 

In  1817,  when  Dr.  Rice  was  in  the  midst  of  his  larger  life, 
there  came  to  his  door  in  Richmond  a  young  man  from  New 
England.  This  was  Jonathan  Cushing  of  New  Hampshire, 
who  had  put  himself  through  Dartmouth  College  (1817),  and 
now  at  the  age  of  twenty-four,  with  health  none  too  strong, 
was  looking  for  employment  at  the  South.  Dr.  Rice,  being 
familiar  with  the  progress  of  affairs  at  Hampden  Sidney, 
knew  of  a  temporary  vacancy  on  the  staff  of  Dr.  Hoge,  and 
recommended  the  applicant  to  Dr.  Hoge.  Mr.  Cushing  came 
to  Hampden  Sidney,  and,  as  the  accidents  were,  stayed  on 
there.  In  1796  the  connection  of  John  Holt  Rice  with  Hamp- 
den Sidney  had  been  accidental. 

It  is  difficult  to  understand  what  Dr.  Foote  means  by  saying 
that  Jonathan  Cushing 's  first  post  at  Hampden  Sidney  was 
that  of  Librarian.  A  hundred  years  later  there  is  no  such 
distinct  post.  Mr.  Cushing  must  have  been  a  Tutor  from  the 
first,  with  perhaps  something  to  do  with  the  books.  Maybe 
he  lived  at  the  Library  House  where  the  college  books,  the 
Prince  Edward  Library  Company's  books,  and  the  Philosoph- 
ical apparatus  were  kept  in  storage.  Jonathan  Cushing  was 
no  bookman  as  the  term  is  used.  If  he  was  ever  Librarian, 
it  was  not  for  long.  The  philosophical  apparatus  was  what 
had  caught  his  eye  especially  at  Dartmouth,  and  here  at 
Hampden  Sidney  he  occupied  himself  with  the  outfit.  The 
rage  for  geology,  &c,  that  was  already  on  at  the  North  had 
not  communicated  itself  to  Hampden  Sidney.  Jonathan 
Cushing  was  the  communicator.  He  had  hardly  been  six 
weeks  at  the  place  when  the  Board  of  Trustees  began  inquir- 
ing of  Dr.  Redman  Coxe  of  Philadelphia,  about  a  newer  out- 
fit for  chemistry  and  natural  philosophy  in  the  premises. 
The  foundation  was  being  secularized. 

Mr.  Cushing,  it  is  said,  had  left  New  England  intending 
to  qualify  himself  for  the  law  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina. 
[See  biographical  sketch  in  Southern  Literally  Messenger, 
vol.  II,  pp.  163-166.]  Happening  to  stop  at  Richmond  and 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  he  gradually  became  interested  in  the 
wonderful  country  that  is  Southside  Virginia,  and  in  Hamp- 


258  [1825 

den  Sidney,  the  sole  college  of  Southside  Virginia.  At  first 
he  was  restless  to  get  away,  even  went  to  the  Court  House 
tavern  to  book  passage  for  the  South,  but  Dr.  Hoge  per- 
suaded him  not  to  go.  Young  Mr.  Cushing's  mind  was  mature 
enough  to  grasp  something  of  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of 
the  college  and  to  imagine  something  of  the  possibilities.  The 
State  of  Virginia  was  taking  steps  to  align  itself  with  the 
nineteenth  century.  Mr.  Cushing  saw  no  valid  reason  why 
Hampden  Sidney  should  not  come  into  the  movement.  There 
was  plenty  of  intelligence  in  the  neighborhood,  but  Mr.  Cush- 
ing is  to  be  allowed  full  credit  for  energy  and  commonsense 
suggestion.  At  any  rate  he  grew  interested  in  the  immediate 
problems  of  his  Southside  Virginia  environment,  and  within 
a  very  short  time  was  attacking  them  as  the  work  of  his  short 
life. 

His  biographer,  (article  cited),  speaks  bluntly  of  conditions 
at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1817* :  "  No  class  had  graduated  regu- 
larly for  several  years,  and  the  degrees  occasionally  conferred 
on  individuals  who  had  gone  through  the  whole  course  were 
not  respected  at  other  colleges.  There  was  hardly  the  name 
of  a  library  or  Philosophical  Apparatus,  and  the  buildings 
were  to  the  last  degree  unsightly  and  inadequate. ' '  This  is 
severe,  a  little  too  severe.  What  degrees  had  been  conferred 
since  1800  were  seldom  submitted  for  inspection  at  other  col- 
leges. Hardly  anybody  took  a  degree  except  as  qualification 
for  the  work  of  a  minister — and  it  will  be  granted  that  Pres- 
bytery has  generally  been  insistent  upon  the  schooling  of  its 
alumni.  The  curriculum  at  Hampden  Sidney  before  1825, 
as  presented  in  these  pages,  will  show  what  the  grilling  was 
by  schedule.  As  for  the  plant,  it  is  true  enough  that  the  plant 
had  not  grown,  nor  had  it  been  refurbished  much.  The  system 
was  for  the  President  and  masters  to  divide  among  themselves, 


*But  see  statement  of  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  Richmond  Enquirer,  July  17,  1829:  "It  is  a  fact  undeniable  that 
since  the  foundation  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  more  of  Virginia's 
sons  have  received  their  education  within  her  halls  than  at  any  other 
institution  in  the  State,  and  for  the  last  ten  years  more  than  double  as 
many  as  at  any  other." 


JONATHAN   P.   CUSHING 


PUBLISHED     BY 

.MERICAN   QUARTERLY   REGISTER 

NOVEMBER,    1838 


1825]  259 

by  scale,  the  tuition  money  coming  in  during  the  year;  room 
rents  were  applied  to  incidentals,  those  absorbing  incidentals ; 
there  was  hardly  any  revenue  from  endowment — so,  very 
naturally  the  plant  suffered.  Mr.  Gushing  therefore  was  con- 
fronted not  only  with  the  problem  of  secularization,  but  with 
the  necessity  of  modernization  in  general.  He  was  greatly 
attached  to  Dr.  Hoge,  and  did  nothing  to  cause  Dr.  Hoge  to 
regard  him  as  a  meddling  youngster.  Jonathan  Cushing  was 
a  man  of  discernment  and  sympathy,  of  energy  and  dignity 
of  character. 

We  will  not  itemize  here  Mr.  Cushing 's  work  for  Hampden 
Sidney  College  and  for  the  State  of  Virginia.  He  died  in 
1835,  a  little  past  forty,  a  few  years  after  his  friend  Dr.  Rice. 
Mr.  Cushing  was  made  President  of  Hampden  Sidney  College 
in  1821.*  Then  Dr.  Rice  returned  to  Hampden  Sidney.  Dur- 
ing those  ten  years  through  1831,  just  before  and  just  after 
the  opening  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  Mr.  Cushing  and 
Dr.  Rice  gave  Hampden  Sidney  its  nineteenth  century  form. 


*In  1817  Dr.  Hoge  was  already  looking  North  for  a  Tutor;  Dr.  Eice 
no  doubt  had  given  the  pointer.  That  is  to  say,  Mr.  Cushing  came  to 
Hampden  Sidney  to  supply  the  place  of  an  acquaintance  of  his  who  had 
fallen  sick  and  very  soon  died.  It  is  not  improbable  that  this  young 
man  was  Zebina  Thayer,  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth,  1817.  From  1817  for 
some  ten  years  the  staff  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  was  made  up  from 
the  North.  Gilbert  Morgan  of  New  York  (Union  College,  1815),  came 
in  1819  and  stayed  through  1824.  Dr.  Morgan  died  in  1875,  having  spent 
most  of  his  life  as  a  teacher  in  the  South.  In  1821  J.  T.  B.  Skillman 
(Union  College,  1819),  was  appointed  Tutor  and  stayed  the  year.  He 
settled  as  a  physician  at  New  Brunswick,  New  Jersey.  In  1821  Peter 
MacViccar  (Union,  1818),  also  began  work  at  Hampden  Sidney  and 
was  for  many  years  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  the  college.  William 
Blauvelt  (Rutgers,  1814),  was  a  Tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  for  two  years 
from  1822.  For  nearly  sixty  years  Mr.  Blauvelt  was  pastor  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  at  Lamington,  New  Jersey.  James  Marsh  (President 
of  the  University  of  Vermont)  was  Professor  at  Hampden  Sidney  from 
1824  to  1826.  Henry  Wood  (Dartmouth,  1822),  was  Tutor  at  the  college 
in  1825;  Rufus  Nutting  (Dartmouth,  1814),  was  Tutor  in  1826,  in  the 
room  of  Stephen  Taylor  (Williams,  1816).  It  was  an  era  of  northern 
lights  at  Hampden  Sidney.  The  explanation  is,  not  only  that  New  Eng- 
land and  its  neighbors  were  sending  out  numbers  of  pretty  well  trained 
men,  but  that  at  Hampden  Sidney  the  supply  of  theological  students 
was  cut  off  for  a  feAv  years  after  1820.  And  then  Mr.  Cushing,  having 
the  opportunity  of  secularization,  was  secularizing.  Before  1830,  Mr. 
Cushing  had  begun  raising  up  his  own  staff,  and  with  1830  his  pupils 
were  going  out  to  take  hold  of  work  in  neighboring  colleges.  1830! 
What  a  time  of  alarm  and  black  omen  in  our  fair  country. 


260  [1825 

The  college  was  secularized  with  no  hurt  to  religion.  The 
Theological  Seminary  was  established,  a  technical  graduate 
school,  with  the  Bible  for  its  first  object.  Hampden  Sidney 
became  and  continued,  in  the  face  of  dreadful  discourage- 
ments, a  place  worthy  of  regard  and  held  in  estimation  over 
a  wide  territory.  Hampden  Sidney  has  been  a  significant 
place  from  the  first.  It  is  folly  to  attach  any  importance  to 
its  mere  age.  Without  such  men  as  Mr.  Cushing  and  Dr.  Rice, 
of  imagination  and  courage,  there  is  no  telling  how  insignifi- 
cant Hampden  Sidney  might  have  become  soon  after  1820. 
Hence  the  value  of  looking  into  the  record — to  find  out  who 
our  authors  were,  and  to  be  convinced  that  wholesome  progress 
can  never  spring  either  from  the  meretricious  or  the  com- 
placent. 


Thomas  Atkinson 

b.  1807,  d.  1881.  Son  of  Robert  Atkinson  of  "Mansfield," 
Dinwiddie  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  after  Decem- 
ber 1823,  and  graduated  in  1825.  He  had  been  a  student  at 
Yale,  but  was  expelled  for  refusing  to  give  evidence  to  the 
faculty  against  some  of  his  friends  who  had  been  cutting  up. 
Studied  law  under  Judge  Tucker  at  Winchester,  and  practiced 
with  success  for  several  years.  In  1835  he  was  asked  by  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  to  deliver  an  address, 
October  3,  1836,  in  commemoration  of  President  Cushing. 
November,  1836,  he  was  ordained  deacon  in  Norfolk,  by  Bishop 
Meade;  became  assistant  at  Christ  Church,  Norfolk,  was 
consecrated  priest  in  1837,  and  served  for  a  few  years  as 
rector  of  St.  Paul's,  Norfolk,  and  of  St.  Paul's,  Lynchburg. 
Rector  of  churches  in  Baltimore  for  ten  years  after  1843,  he 
was  chosen  Bishop  of  North  Carolina,  and  was  consecrated 
at  St.  John's  Chapel,  New  York,  in  October,  1853.  Bishop 
Atkinson  was  a  man  of  intellect,  worldly  wisdom,  piety  and 
humanity.  He  is  perhaps  especially  remembered  for  his  share 
in  the  bringing  together  of  North  and  South  in  the  Episcopal 
Church  after  the  Civil  War.    He  made  it  plain  to  the  House 


1825]  261 

of  Bishops  that  he  desired  unity,  but  could  not  say  he  rejoiced 
at  the  outcome  of  the  war.  He  was  an  elder  brother  of  Presi- 
dent Atkinson  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Their  brother, 
William  M.  Atkinson,  (Princeton,  1814),  a  lawyer  and  then 
a  Presbyterian  minister,  was  from  1826  for  many  years  active 
as  trustee  of  college  and  seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney. 

John  Barksdale 

b.  1798,  d.  1829.  Son  of  Rice  Barksdale  of  Albemarle 
County,  and  grandson  of  Samuel  Barksdale  of  Albemarle, 
whose  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Charles  Wingfield,  Sr.  John 
Barksdale,  having  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in 
1825,  immediately  entered  the  Seminary  recently  established 
by  Dr.  Rice  at  Hampden  Sidney.  In  1828  Mr.  Barksdale  was 
ready  to  begin  his  work  as  a  minister.  He  was  a  missionary 
in  Amelia  County  for  a  few  months,  and  founder  of  Amelia 
Church.     In  1829  he  died  at  his  home  in  Albemarle  County. 

Woods,  History  of  Albemarle  County,  p.  142. 

Francis  Bartlett 

On  the  printed  catalogue  assigned  to  Athens,  Ohio,  Francis 
Bartlett  may  have  come  to  Hampden  Sidney  through  the 
agency  of  Dr.  James  Hoge  of  Columbus.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  that  Francis  Bartlett  came  to  Hampden  Sidney  College 
from  Athens,  Ohio,  in  1821,  and  that  Professor  Samuel  D. 
Hoge,  late  of  Hampden  Sidney,  went  to  Ohio  University  at 
Athens  in  1823.  Immediately  on  his  graduation  in  1825  Mr. 
Bartlett  entered  the  theological  seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney 
and  took  the  full  three  years'  course.  He  was  for  a  time  a 
minister  in  Brunswick  County,  Va.,  but  returned  to  Ohio, 
and  probably  became  pastor  of  a  Congregational  church  there 
some  years  before  his  death  in  1868. 

Union  Seminary  Catalogue. 


262  [1825 

Charles  T.  Beale 

Born  in  1806  at  Pattonsburg,  Botetourt  County.  At  Hamp- 
den Sidney  about  1823-25;  University  of  Virginia,  1826-27. 
Farmer.    President  of  Bank  of  Virginia  at  Buchanan. 

University  of  Virginia  Alumni  Catalogue. 

Philip  A.  Boiling 

b.  1806,  d.  1876.  Brother  of  Robert  Boiling  (1812).  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  1825  (after  a  year  at  Hampden  Sidney). 
Lawyer.  Circuit  Court  Judge.  Member  of  legislature  from 
Buckingham  County,  1831  and  1850.  During  the  great  de- 
bates of  1831-32,  Mr.  Boiling  voted  for  emancipation.  His 
home  in  Buckingham  was  called  '  Willow  Hill. '  Mr.  Boiling 
was  a  Whig,  and  was  beaten  for  Congress  in  1835  by  James 
W.  Bouldin,  a  very  close  and  very  hot  election. 

Dr.  Mcllwaine's  Manuscript. 


Of  Dr.  Mcllwaine's  collections  towards  a  general  catalogue  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  (work  very  carefully  done,  the  facts  secured  by 
printed  questionnaire) ,  only  five  cards  have  been  preserved.  These  cards 
must  have  been  numerous.  One  of  the  five  remaining  bears  the  number 
739.    What  happened  to  Dr.  Mellwaine's  cards?    This  also  is  a  mystery. 

On  a  card  containing  certain  Boiling  data,  Colonel  Hubard  in  his  reply 
to  Dr.  Mcllwaine  said  he  believed  that  Willie  (pronounced  Wiley)  Jones 
Eppes,  son  of  the  Hon.  John  W.  Eppes,  had  been  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College. 

Nathaniel  Francis  Cabell 

b.  1807,  d.  1891.  Son  of  Nicholas  Cabell,  Jr.,  (q.  v.)  of 
Nelson  County.  His  father  died  in  1809.  His  mother,  a 
daughter  of  Col.  Samuel  W.  Venable  of  Prince  Edward 
County,  came  to  live  at  her  father's  house,  and  N.  F.  Cabell 
was  educated  largely  in  Prince  Edward  County.  He  was  four 
years  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  graduating  in  1825;  then 
two  years  at  the  Harvard  Law  School.  He  practiced  law 
about  four  years  at  Prince  Edward  Court  House.    In  1832  he 


1825]  263 

succeeded  to  the  ''Liberty  Hall"  estate  in  Nelson  County, 
returned  to  that  county,  and  lived  there  until  a  few  years 
before  his  death.  Mr.  Cabell  about  1837  became  a  Sweden- 
borgian  outright.  He  not  only  adhered  to  those  tenets,  but 
was  a  productive  student  of  the  Bible  as  interpreted  by 
Swedenborg.  His  most  voluminous  work  of  that  sort  was 
"The  Triads  of  Scripture,"  of  which  only  a  small  part  has 
been  published.  Mr.  Cabell  made  extensive  collections  to- 
wards a  history  of  Virginia  agriculture  (see  Virginia  State 
Library  Bulletin,  1913)  ;  assembled  a  mass  of  material  illus- 
trating his  own  family  history ;  preserved  valuable  documents 
relating  to  Hampden  Sidney  College ;  was  the  historian  of  the 
founding  of  the  University  of  Virginia;  in  short  was  a  man 
given  to  contemplation  and  laborious  investigation. 

Brown,  pp.  601-603. 

William  Lewis  Cabell 

Son  of  Dr.  George  Cabell,  Sr.,  of  Lynchburg.  Educated 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College  (1821-25),  and  at  the  University 
of  Virginia,  1826.  For  cutting  up  at  the  University,  William 
L.  Cabell  had  to  be  overhauled  in  solemn  meeting  of  the 
Visitors,  April  7,  1826,  the  last  meeting  attended  by  Mr. 
Jefferson.  Mr.  Cabell  died  at  Red  Sulphur  Springs,  the  sum- 
mer of  1830. 

Brown,  243. 

Recollections  of  Lynchburg,  79. 

James  B.  Daniel 

James  Daniel  [1762-1841]  of  Cumberland  and  Albemarle, 
was  one  of  the  earliest  supporters  of  the  movement  for  a 
theological  seminary  at  Hampden  Sidney.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Briery  Church  Committee  (of  Hanover  Presby- 
tery) "for  obtaining  and  establishing  a  Theological  Library 
and    School    at    Hampden    Sidney    College" — April,    180ft 


264  [1825 

James  Daniel  was  also  a  member  of  the  first  Board  of  Trus- 
tees of  Union  Seminary  in  1826.  His  son,  James  B.  Daniel, 
a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1823-1825,  was  a 
resident  of  Mecklenburg  County,  (born  1805,  died  1883),  and 
the  brother-in-law  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Lyle  Graham,  D.  D., 
Professor  in  Union  Seminary. 

Statement  of  William  S.  Morton  of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

Joseph  S.  Edie 

b.  1799,  d.  1887.  A.  B.,  1825.  Teacher.  Physician.  Pres- 
byterian Elder.  Lived  at  Christiansburg,  Virginia,  for  many 
years.  [Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript].  The  printed  catalogues 
assign  Joseph  S.  Edie  to  Athens,  Ohio.  Samuel  D.  Hoge 
during  his  time  at  Athens,  Ohio,  sent  several  students  to 
Hampden  Sidney. 

Hugh  A.  Garland 

Spotswood  Garland,  born  in  Albemarle  County,  served  in 
his  youth  as  deputy  to  William  S.  Crawford,  clerk  of  Amherst. 
From  1808  to  1850  he  was  clerk  of  Nelson  County.  He  was 
a  man  of  great  natural  ability,  was  a  forcible  and  elegant 
speaker,  and  very  much  of  a  wit.  He  sent  two  sons  to  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College.  Hugh  Garland  spent  four  years  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  graduating  in  1825.  Apparently  he  was  more 
than  once  uncertain  whether  to  choose  literature  or  law  for  his 
business.  Prom  1826  to  1830  he  was  Professor  of  Greek  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College.  From  1820  for  a  few  years  there 
was  an  effort  to  make  the  college  one  of  scientific  studies  well 
balanced  by  the  classics  of  Greece  and  Rome.  Professor  Gar- 
land was  active  as  Professor  of  Greek  in  stirring  up  interest 
within  the  Philanthropic  Society  and  out  of  it  in  classical 
books  and  reading.  Resigning  his  professorship  he  went  to 
the  University  of  Virginia  for  law,  settled  in  Mecklenburg 
County  and  practiced  with  success.  He  represented  that 
county  in  the  legislature  from  1833  to  1838.  He  was  then 
made  clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives ;  and  at  the  open- 


1825]  265 

ing  of  the  session  in  1839  raised  a  storm  in  Congress  by  omit- 
ting to  read  out  the  names  of  five  New  Jersey  Whigs.  In 
1841,  the  Whigs  getting  so  numerous  at  Washington,  Mr. 
Garland  removed  to  a  farm  near  Petersburg ;  and  in  1845 
went  out  to  Missouri.  He  practiced  law  at  St.  Louis  and  died 
there  about  1884  (?).  He  always  had  a  great  fancy  for 
literary  composition,  and  for  philosophical  meditation.  His 
''Life  of  John  Randolph"  (2  vols.,  1850)  is  worth  a  careful 
reading. 

Old  Virginia  Clerks,  252. 

Life  of  John  Quincy  Adams  (Am.  Statesmen),  291-296. 

Life  of  Van  Buren  (Am.  Statesmen),  320-322. 

Washington  and  Lee  Historical  Papers,  No.  5,  203-210. 

Democratic  Review,  V.  263. 

Morris  H.  Garland 

General  Samuel  Garland  of  the  Confederate  Army  [D.  H. 
Hill's  Division]  who  was  killed  in  Maryland  in  1862  at  the 
battle  of  South  Mountain,  aetat.  32,  was  a  son  of  Morris  H. 
Garland  of  Lynchburg.  Morris  Garland,  a  student  at  Hamp- 
den College  1823-1825,  was  a  lawyer.  He  married  a  daughter 
of  Spotswood  Garland,  clerk  of  Nelson  County,  and  General 
Samuel  Garland  therefore  was  a  nephew  of  Hugh  A.  Garland 
and  Landon  C.  Garland. 

Nerval  D.  Howe 

At  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1820-1825,  registered  from 
Athens,  Ohio.  About  1826-27  a  student  at  Union  Seminary. 
Licensed  as  a  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  church  in  1829  for 
work  in  West  Hanover  Presbytery,  but  seems  to  have  con- 
tinued as  a  minister  only  about  five  years. 
See  Union  Seminary  Catalogue. 

Edmund  Wilcox  Hubard 

Dr.  William  Hubard  of  Charlotte  County,  (had  studied  at 
Edinburgh  after  leaving  William  and  Mary),  was  in  the  State 
Senate  for  several  terms  after  1783,  from  the  district  com- 


266  [1825 

posed  of  Halifax,  Charlotte  and  Prince  Edward.  His  son, 
Dr.  James  Thruston  Hubard  of  Buckingham  County,  sent  two 
sons  to  Hampden  Sidney  College — Edmund  W.  Hubard  and 
Robert  T.  Hubard.  Edmund  Wilcox  Hubard,  (born  1806, 
died  1872),  was  a  representative  in  Congress  from  1841  to 
1847.  His  report  (1844)  on  the  limits  (i.e.  boundaries)  of 
Virginia,  embodying  data  submitted  by  Governor  Tazewell,  is 
a  sort  of  classic  of  its  kind.  Edmund  W.  Hubard  was  a 
student  at  Hampden  Sidney  about  1825;  his  brother  Robert 
T.  Hubard  (father  of  Col.  Robert  T.  Hubard  of  Buckingham 
County)  a  few  years  later. 

See  William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly,  VI,  244-245. 

Raymond  R.  Minor 

Entered  as  a  science  student  in  Hampden  Sidney  Catalogue, 
1825,  and  assigned  to  Prince  Edward  County ;  but  in  1821  set 
down  as  from  Bedford  County.  It  is  not  impossible  Raymond 
Minor  was  a  ward  of  Dr.  Rice's.  See  letters  of  Dr.  Rice  to 
Harriet  Minor,  in 

Life  of  John  Holt  Eice,  p.  180,  &c. 

William  Hartweli  Perry 

b.  1802.  Prince  Edward  County.  Hampden  Sidney,  1822- 
1825.  M.  D.,  University  of  Virginia,  1829.  Settled  in  Lunen- 
burg County,  and  practiced  there  many  years.     Died  1870. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

James  Lanes  Randolph 

Son  of  Peyton  Randolph  of  Prince  Edward  County;  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  1821-1825,  and  much  interested 
while  there  in  the  affairs  of  the  Union  Society.  It  is  very 
likely  that  the  late  Innes  Randolph  of  Baltimore,  poet  and 
humorist  (to  whom  has  been  attributed  "The  Night  Before 
Christmas")  was  the  son  of  James  Innes  Randolph  of  the 
notice.    Mr.  Innes  Randolph  was  born  at  Winchester  in  1837. 


1825]  267 

Isaac  Read 

Born  in  Charlotte  County.  Son  of  Isaac  Read  (Trustee  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  1803-1823,  a  brother  of  the  Rev. 
Clement  Read).  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1821.  A.  B., 
1825.  Lawyer.  Whig.  Candidate  for  Virginia  Senate  vs. 
Louis  Bouldin  about  1835.  Removed  to  Charleston,  West 
Virginia.     Died  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Alexander  Rives 

b.  1806,  d.  1885.  Son  of  Robert  Rives,  of  "Oakridge," 
Nelson  County,  a  remarkable  man.  Robert  Rives  [1764-1845] 
fought  in  the  Revolution,  and  then  managed  his  own  cam- 
paigns in  business.  His  active  commercial  life  fell  between 
those  momentous  years  in  the  history  of  American  commerce, 
1789  and  1815.  Mr.  Rives  settled  in  the  County  of  Nelson  in 
1815,  having  by  skill,  sagacity,  judgment  and  success  become 
one  of  the  first  of  American  merchants.  He  was  in  partner- 
ship for  many  years  with  Donald  and  Burton  of  London. 
Robert  Rives  sent  three  sons  (possibly  four)  to  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  viz.:  William  C.  Rives,  Landon  C.  Rives, 
Alexander  Rives,  and  possibly  George  Rives  (see  Brown,  p. 
439).  Alexander  Rives  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  in 
1825,  (at  college  he  was  held  in  estimation  by  his  fellows  for 
his  judicial  mind) ,  then  studied  law  at  the  University  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  settled  for  the  practice  in  Albemarle  County.  He 
had  at  first  accepted,  but  declined  election  to  a  chair  at  Wash- 
ington College.  Like  his  brother  William  he  was  a  Democrat 
until  1840;  then  a  Conservative;  and  from  1844  to  1861  a 
Whig.  He  was  in  the  legislature  several  terms  and  was  a 
member  of  the  Convention  of  1850.  Judge  Rives  was  a  Union 
man.  After  the  war  he  acted  for  a  time  with  the  Conservative 
Party,  but  became  a  Republican.  He  was  appointed  by  Presi- 
dent Grant  Judge  of  the  U.  S.  District  Court  for  the  Western 
District  of  Virginia.     Judge  Rives  was  a  guest  of  Hampden 


268  [1825 

Sidney  College  at  the  Centennial  Celebration  in  1876.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Episcopal  church,  like  his  father  becom- 
ing a  member  of  the  church  rather  late  in  life. 

Brown,  pp.  442-443. 

John  James  Royall 

Born  at  'Royalton  Mills/  Amelia  County,  in  1805.  Entered 
Hampden  Sidney  1821.  A.  B.,  1825.  Union  Theological  Semi- 
nary 1826-29.  In  charge  of  churches  at  Petersburg,  in  Fau- 
quier County,  and  at  Winchester,  1829-1838.  Active  in  the 
New  School  Presbyterian  movement  of  1837.  Pastor  of 
churches  in  Culpeper  County,  1839-1856.  Died  suddenly  at 
his  home  in  Fauquier  County,  February,  1856.  Mr.  Royall 
married  a  daughter  of  the  celebrated  lawyer  George  Keith 
Taylor  of  Petersburg. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 


Rough  calculation  seems  to  show  that  of  the  students  listed  here, 
eighteen  of  the  eighteenth  century  became  ministers — seventeen,  from 
1800  to  1813 — nineteen,  from  1813  to  1821— and  twenty,  from  1821 
through  1825.  When  theological  instruction  ceased  at  the  college,  and 
the  president  was  a  layman,  Mr.  Cushing  (the  president)  was  at  once 
careful  to  ask  a  minister  to  come  and  be  chaplain. 


Daniel  Livermore  Russell 

b.  Concord,  New  Hampshire,  1800;  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College  1822-1825 ;  a  student  at  Union  Seminary,  Hampden 
Sidney,  for  a  year  or  two ;  licensed  as  a  minister  by  Hanover 
Presbytery,  1829.  Mr.  Russell  was  for  some  years  a  Presby- 
terian minister  in  North  Carolina  and  Mississippi.  About  the 
year  1848  he  became  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church.  It  is 
likely  that  he  died  in  the  South. 

Union    Seminary   Catalogue. 


1825]  269 

George  B.  Skillern 

Dr.  Foote  tells  a  story  of  Cary  Allen's  visitation,  spring  of 
1794,  at  the  house  of  Colonel  Skillern  of  Pattonsburg,  Bote- 
tourt County,  'an  amiable  old  Virginia  gentleman  not  par- 
ticularly inclined  to  religion.'  Colonel  Skillern  was  very 
much  interested  in  James  River  improvements,  and  was  with 
difficulty  diverted  from  the  topic  on  the  Sunday  morning. 
(Foote  II,  231-233.) 

George  B.  Skillern  of  Botetourt,  was  a  student  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College  1824-25.  He  then  went  to  the  University  of 
Virginia  for  a  year,  1826-27.  In  1828  he  shot  himself.  George 
Skillern  was  born  in  the  year  1807. 

See  University  of  Virginia  Alumni  Catalogue. 

William  J.  Watkins 

b.  1808,  d.  1884.  Son  of  William  M.  Watkins  of  Charlotte 
County.  A.  B.,  Hampden  bidney,  1825 ;  lawyer ;  removed  to 
St.  Augustine,  Florida,  and  was  elected  mayor  of  the  town. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript:  and  Statement  of  William  S.  Morton 
of  Charlotte  County,  1920. 

John  Sinclair  Watt 

Born  in  Richmond,  January  22,  1802.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney  before  1820  (the  name  John  Watt  appears  on  Philan- 
thropic Society  minutes  as  early  as  1817).  A.  B.,  1826.  Stu- 
dent at  Union  Seminary,  1826-1829.  Presbyterian  minister 
and  teacher  in  Amelia  County,  and  at  Staunton,  Virginia; 
in  Kentucky  and  in  Tennessee.  *  After  returning  to  Virginia 
his  health  and  other  causes  prevented  any  regular  work  as  a 
minister,  and  he  engaged  mainly  in  teaching  and  preaching 
as  he  had  opportunity  'till  his  death  in  a  friend's  home  near 
Petersburg,  January  5,  1879.'  Mr.  Watt  was  a  scholar  and  a 
controversialist.  He  was  also  something  of  a  reformer.  He 
lived  in  the  North  for  awhile,  and  was  made  more  tolerant 
of  his  own  country  by  the  talk  of  northern  extremists.    He  is 


270  [1825 

remembered  locally  for  his  excellent  sketch  of  the  early  his- 
tory of  the  Philanthropic  Society.  He  was  a  guest  at  the 
Centennial  Celebration  of  the  College  in  1876.  John  Sinclair 
Watt  is  buried  in  the  church  yard  of  St.  John's  Church  at 
Richmond,  twenty  feet  from  the  main  entrance  of  the  church, 
near  the  walk  on  the  left  side  leaving  the  church. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Union  Seminary  Catalogue. 

History  of  Henrico  Parish  and  Old  St.  John's  Church,  p.  515. 

James  M.  Whittle 

Fortescue  Whittle  of  County  Antrim  Ireland,  left  Ireland 
precipitately  in  the  revolutionary  year  1798.  Settling  in 
Mecklenburg  County,  Virginia,  he  married  a  daughter  of 
Colonel  William  Davies,  who  was  a  son  of  Samuel  Davies. 
James  M.  Whittle  of  Mecklenburg  County,  a  student  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  about  1825,  was  a  son  of  Fortescue  Whit- 
tle, and  therefore  a  brother  of  Bishop  Francis  M.  Whittle. 
Some  of  his  brethren  called  Bishop  Meade  a  Methodist  because 
he  was  low  church;  and  it  is  said  that  Bishop  Whittle  was 
now  and  then  called  a  Presbyterian  because  he  was  low  church. 
Bishop  Whittle  was  not  fond  of  operatic  music  (so  styled)  in 
the  church.  But  then  there  are  high  church  Presbyterians. 
James  M.  Whittle  was  a  member  of  the  Convention  of  1851, 
and  represented  his  county  (Pittsylvania)  in  the  State  Senate 
during  the  Civil  War. 


ORDER  OF  EXERCISES 

FOR    THE 

PUBLIC   PERFORMANCE 

AT 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY  COLLEGE 

April  28,   1825 

1.  Latin  Oration, 

by  Junior  W.  A.  Daniel  of  the  Philanthropic  Society. 

2.  English  Oration, 

The  Influence  of  the  Feudal  System  on  Literature 
by  Junior   T.  Pryor,  of  the  Union  Society 


1825]  271 

3.  Dialogue, 

The  Bights  of  the  Cherokee  Indians  to  their  Lands  in  Georgia 
by  Freshmen  S.  V.  Womack  and  A.  B.  Dawson, 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society 

4.  English  Oration The  French  Revolution 

by  Senior  T.  Atkinson  of  the  Union  Society 

5.  Forensic, 

Was  the  Result  of  the  Crusades  Favourable  to  Human 
Happiness  and  Liberty? 
by  Sophomores  W.  H.  Perry  and  G.  T.  Swann 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society. 

6.  Poem 

by  N.  D.  Howe,  of  the  Union  Society 

7.  English  Oration The  Influence  of  Foreign  Literature 

by  Senior  I.  Bead,  of  the  Philanthropic  Society 

8.  Satirical  Oration „ _ Modern  Politics 

by  Senior  F.  Bartlett,  of  the  Union  Society 

INTERMISSION  OF  HALF  AN  HOUR 

9.  Greek  Oration, 

The  Influence  of  Pericles'  Administration  on  the  Political 
Character  of  Greece 
by  Junior  W.  W.  Hudson  of  the  Union  Society 

10.  English  Oration _ Literary  Fame 

by  Junior  W.  M.  Peyton  of  the  Philanthropic  Society 

11.  T>i&LOGmi..„..Whether  Public  or  Private  Education  is  More  Beneficial 

by  Freshmen  C.  Irving  and  B.  Crump  of  the  Union  Society 

12.  English  Oration _ Imitation 

by  Senior  N.  F.  Cabell  of  the  Philanthropic  Society 

13.  Forensic, 

Is   the    Tendency   of   Theatrical   Representations  Injurious    to 
Society? 

by  Sophomores  C.  L.  Mosby  and  W.  B.  Tinsley, 
of   the  Union  Society 

14.  Liberia _ A  Poem 

by  Junior  A.  Hart  of  the  Philanthropic  Society 

15.  English  Oration „ Love  of  Fame 

by  Senior  H.  Garland  of  the  Union  Society 

16.  Satirical  Oration,  or Objurgatory  Remarks 

by  Senior  J.  J.  Eoyall  of  the  Philanthropic  Society 
Exercises  to   commence  at  10  o'clock — Music  occasionally  at  intervals 


X826 


George  E.  Dabney 

b.  Campbell  County,  May  19,  1808.  Entered  Hampden 
Sidney,  1823;  A.  B.,  1826.  Studied  law  at  University  of 
Virginia,  1828.  Principal  of  New  London  Academy,  Bedford 
County,  two  years.  Professor  of  Latin,  &c,  Washington  Col- 
lege (Washington  and  Lee)  1837-1851;  then  Professor  at 
Richmond  College  until  it  was  closed  by  the  civil  war.  Bap- 
tist. Died  at  Richmond,  March  10th,  1868.  [Dr.  Hooper's 
Manuscript.']  Professor  Dabney  wrote  a  good  deal  for  the 
magazines.  Note  his  interesting  analysis  of  public  education 
in  Virginia,  1841,  Southern  Literary  Messenger ,  VII,  63 Iff. 
In  1849  he  delivered  the  Alumni  Society  Address  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  "On  the  Value  of  Writing." 

See  Maxwell's  Virginia  Historical  Register,  III,  47. 

William  Daniel,  Jr. 

Born  1806,  d.  1873.  Son  of  Judge  William  Daniel,  who 
until  about  1819  lived  in  Cumberland  County.  Shortly  before 
William  Daniel,  Jr.,  entered  Hampden  Sidney  College,  his 
father  had  removed  to  Lynchburg.  Graduating  at  Hampden 
Sidney  in  1826,  William  Daniel  studied  law  at  the  University 
of  Virginia,  and  began  practice  at  Lynchburg  which  was  his 
home  until  the  end  of  his  life.  He  was  successful  from  the 
first,  was  elected  as  a  Democrat  to  the  House  of  Delegates  at 
the  age  of  twenty-four,  serving  three  terms;  but  politics  was 
not  his  destiny.  He  was  a  lawyer.  At  the  age  of  forty  he 
became  a  member  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Appeals,  and  was 
a  Judge  of  that  Court  until  1865  when  the  Alexandria  govern- 
ment displaced  him  from  the  bench.  Judge  Daniel  was  active 
at  the  bar  during  the  few  years  of  life  that  remained  to  him 
after  1865,  in  partnership  with  his  son-in-law,  Don  P.  Halsey 
and  his  son  John  W.  Daniel,  later  Senator  in  Congress.     He 


1826]  273 

died  suddenly  while  in  attendance  upon  the  circuit  court  of 
Nelson  County.  Judge  Daniel  was  of  a  legal  line.  His  father 
was  a  Judge ;  his  uncle  Judge  Briscoe  Baldwin  was  for  some 
years  (1842-1852)  on  the  Supreme  Court  bench;  his  father- 
in-law,  by  a  second  marriage,  Judge  Cabell,  was  President  of 
the  Supreme  Court  1842-1851 ;  and  when  Judge  Daniel  died, 
his  brother-in-law,  Judge  Wood  Bouldin,  had  recently  been 
elected  to  the  Supreme  Court. 

Don  P.  Halsey,  Jr.,  1901  Kaleidoscope,  pp.  22-26. 

Thomas  L.  Hamner 

b.  1806,  d.  1854.  Son  of  Samuel  Hamner  of  Charlotte 
County,  and  brother  of  James  Garland  Hamner.  The  record 
in  Union  Seminary  Catalogue  is  that  Thomas  L.  Hamner, 
(Hampden  Sidney  College,  1824-26)  before  entering  Union 
Seminary  in  1833,  had  been  a  student  at  the  University  of 
Virginia.  For  a  few  years  he  was  a  minister  in  Maryland, 
and  then  for  a  year  until  1845  at  Harrisonburg  in  Virginia. 
After  1845  until  his  death,  Mr.  Hamner  was  a  teacher  in  Bal- 
timore, and  an  agent  of  the  American  Sunday  School  Union. 

Andrew  Hart 

b.  1804,  d.  1879.  Son  of  Andrew  Hart  of  * '-  Sunnybank, ' ' 
Albemarle  County,  a  native  of  Scotland,  who  had  come  to 
Virginia  as  a  factor  for  a  Glasgow  firm.  Andrew  Hart,  senior, 
prospered  in  his  business,  was  a  stedfast  Presbyterian  and 
married  a  daughter  of  Samuel  Leake,  Trustee  of  Hampden, 
Sidney  Academy.  Andrew  Hart's  son  (by  a  second  marriage) 
Andrew  Hart  was  a  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1821- 
1826,  graduating  in  September  1826.  He  was  then  three  years 
a  student  at  Union  Seminary,  Hampden  Sidney;  and  spent 
his  life  as  a  minister,  chiefly  at  Charlotte  Court  House,  1830- 
1847,  and  at  Buchanan,  Montgomery  County,  1858-1875.  Mr. 
Hart  was  for  many  years  a  Trustee  of  Union  Seminary,  and 
about  1848  was  a  field  agent  for  that  Seminary.    He  married 


274  [1826 

the  widow  of  the  Rev.  B.  F.  Stanton,  who  from  1829  to  1842 
was  pastor  of  the  College  Church  and  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  at  Farmville. 

Francis  Fitzgerald  Jones 

Born  in  Nottoway  County,  November  9,  1807.  Entered 
Hampden  Sidney  1822,  left  1826.  Planter  in  Brunswick 
County.  Member  of  Virginia  Senate,  Brunswick  District, 
1849-50.  Died  at  his  home  "The  Oaks,"  in  Brunswick 
County,  July  2,  1865. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

James  Newman 

A  student  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  1822-1826,  from 
Orange  County,  Mr.  Newman  was  announcing,  thirty-one 
years  after,  the  commencement  of 

"HILTON  SCHOOL 

near  Gordonsville,  in  the  county  of  Orange,  on  the  1st  of 
September,  1857:  at  the  residence  of  the  undersigned.  The 
course  of  instruction  will  include  the  English,  Latin,  Greek, 
French,  and  Italian  languages  and  their  Literature,  and 
Mathematics.  The  principal,  my  son  R.  H.  Newman,  has  been 
educated  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  and  is  a  graduate  of 
that  institution  in  most  of  the  departments  in  which  he  will 
give  instruction. 

Terms :  Tuition  and  board,  including  everything,  $200  for 
the  session  of  ten  months. 

JAMES  NEWMAN." 

Southern  Planter,  September  1857,   Supplement  p.  11. 


1826]  275 

George  N.  N.  Porter 

At  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1823-1826,  George  N.  N. 
Porter  of  Powhatan,  was  representing  that  county  in  the 
House  of  Delegates,  1840.  It  is  interesting  to  set  down  the 
names  of  representatives  in  the  legislature  from  Powhatan 
County  that  are  identical  with  names  on  the  register  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College: 

1786  Wade  Mosby 

1788 Thomas  Turpin 

1793  William  Moseley 

1817 _ Thomas  Miller 

1821  William  Archer  Cocke 

1836 William  C.  Scott 

1840 George  N.  N.  Porter 

1843  Ch astain  Cocke 

Theodorick  Pryor 

Born  in  Dinwiddie  County,  1805.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney 1823 ;  A.  B.,  1826 ;  1st  honor.  Law  at  University  of  Vir- 
ginia, 1827.  Practiced  law  a  short  time  in  Dinwiddie  County. 
Studied  theology  at  Princeton  Seminary,  1830-31,  and  at 
Union  Seminary,  (Hampden  Sidney),  the  following  year. 
Presbyterian  minister  in  Nottoway  County  over  forty  years. 
Also  minister  for  a  time  in  Baltimore  and  in  Petersburg. 
Chaplain,  C.  S.  A.,  Longstreet's  Corps.  Moderator,  Synod 
of  Virginia,  1845,  and  General  Assembly  of  Southern  Pres- 
byterian Church,  1883.  Trustee  Union  Seminary,  1838-1852. 
D.  D.,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1852.  Died  at  Nottoway 
Court  House,  1890,  and  buried  under  the  pulpit  of  the  Brick 
Church  there.  Dr.  Pryor  was  a  preacher  of  conspicuous 
powers. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Judge  Roger  A.  Pryor  of  New  York  (Brigadier  General, 
C.  S.  A.,  &c,  Hampden  Sidney,  1849)  was  a  son  of  Theodorick 
Pryor. 


276  [1826 

George  Whitefield  Read 

Born  in  Charlotte  County.  Son  of  the  Rev.  Clement  Read. 
Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1822.  A.  B.,  1826.  Lawyer  in 
Danville,  Virginia.  Presbyterian  Elder.  Died  at  Danville, 
April  3,  1872. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Nicholas  E.  Read 

Born  in  Charlotte  County.  Son  of  the  Rev.  Clement  Read. 
Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1822;  A.  B.,  1826.  Farmer  [see 
his  " Remarks  on  Agricultural  Societies, "  Farmer's  Register, 
II  (1835)  531-536].  Presbyterian  Elder:  Roanoke  Church, 
Charlotte  County  and  in  Danville.    Died  March,  1872. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  B.  Sydnor 

"To  the  community  in  this  neighborhood  it  would  be  un- 
necessary to  speak  of  Mr.  Sydnor's  character  for  judgment 
and  general  intelligence.  To  those  to  whom  he  is  unknown 
we  undertake  to  say  once  for  all,  that  it  is  undisputed.  He 
is  by  profession  a  Hay  Maker.  He  cuts  probably  more  blue 
than  herds-grass,  and  is  therefore  uninfluenced  by  interested 
motives  in  his  view  of  the  subject.  Mr.  Sydnor  insists  that 
the  herds-grass  of  the  north  is  an  entirely  different  article 
from  the  one  we  cultivate  under  that  name."  [Note  by  the 
editor  in  Southern  Planter,  Richmond,  Sept.  1841,  vol.  I,  p. 
156.] 

Mr.  Sydnor's  letter  follows: — "Having  lived  on  Chicka- 
hominy  creek  or  river  (as  it  may  be  termed)  for  the  last  eight 
years,  and  turned  my  attention  almost  exclusively  to  the  culti- 
vation of  hay,  I  feel  privileged  to  say  something.  My  ex- 
perience in  the  matter  satisfies  me  that  as  fine  timothy  and 
herds-grass  can  be  raised  on  Chickahominy  bottoms  as  on  any 


1826]  277 

other  unmanured  land  in  lower  Virginia ;  and  that  three,  four, 
and  sometimes  many  more  heavy  crops  have  been  and  may  be 
taken  from  the  land  without  reseeding." 

William  B.  Sydnor  of  Hanover,  entered  Hampden  Sidney 
in  1823,  and  remained  three  years,  through  the  Junior  class. 
Mr.  Gushing,  in  his  lectures,  gave  attention  to  agriculture. 

Benjamin  P.  Walker 

b.  Buckingham  County,  July  29,  1806.  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney  1823;  A.  B.,  1826.  Lawyer.  Presiding  Justice 
of  Appomattox  County.  Removed  to  Lynchburg.  Episco- 
palian.   Died  in  Bedford  County,  Nov.  1888. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

John  Poythress  Willcox 

b.  1805,  d.  1857.  Graduated  [  ?]  at  Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege in  1826 ;  University  of  Virginia,  1826-27.  John  P.  Will- 
cox was  one  of  a  number  of  students  at  that  period  who  liked 
to  buy  books  and  present  them  to  his  Literary  Society.  The 
Library  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  owes  a  great  deal  to  such 
philanthropists  of  the  old  times.  Mr.  Willcox  was  a  farmer. 
His  home,  '  Flower  dieu  Hundred, '  in  Prince  George  County, 
had  been  the  residence  of  his  family  almost  since  the  setting 
off  of  Prince  George  early  in  the  eighteenth  century. 


1827 


John  Kendrick  Converse 

b.  Lyme,  New  Hampshire,  1801 ;  d.  1880.  Amasa  Converse, 
of  Lyme,  New  Hampshire,  having  graduated  at  Dartmouth, 
and  studied  theology  at  Princeton,  came  South,  and  as  a  mis- 
sionary in  Nottoway  County,  was  brought  in  touch  with  John 
Holt  Rice.  He  settled  in  Richmond,  at  first  editor  and  then 
owner  of  the  religious  publications  established  there  by  Dr. 
Rice.  John  K.  Converse,  brother  of  Amasa  Converse,  spent 
one  year  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  graduating  in  1827.  He 
had  already  been  a  student  at  Dartmouth.  He  was  then  for  a 
year  or  two,  assistant  to  his  brother  in  the  publishing  business 
at  Richmond,  but  returned  to  the  North  and  spent  his  life  in 
Vermont,  as  a  minister  of  the  Congregational  church.  He 
was  for  many  years  President  of  the  Burlington  Seminary, 
a  school  for  girls. 

Presbyterian  Encyclopaedia. 

Edward  C.  Fisher 

A  native  of  Richmond.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1824. 
A.  B.,  1828.  Physician.  Superintendent  of  the  Insane  Asy- 
lum at  Raleigh,  North  Carolina,  from  its  opening  in  1854  to 
1868.    Died  at  Staunton,  Va.,  1890. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

Dr.  Fisher  having  helped  to  organize  a  charitable  institu- 
tion, it  is  of  interest  to  find  that  his  graduating  speech  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  Sept.  24,  1828,  was  on  "The  influ- 
ence of  Charitable  Institutions  on  Literature  and  Civiliza- 
tion."    [Programme  preserved  by  Richard  N.  Venable.] 


1827]  279 

George  Fitzgerald 

Born  at  "The  Glebe,"  Nottoway  County.  Entered  Hamp- 
den Sidney  1823;  A.  B.,  1827.  M.  D.,  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, 1830.  House  of  Delegates,  1840-1842.  Democrat. 
Died  at  his  home  in  Nottoway. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  Giles  Jones 

Born  in  Powhatan  County,  1808.  His  father  was  a  nephew 
of  Governor  Giles.  Educated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
and  at  the  University  of  Virginia.  Studied  law  under  Judge 
Robertson.  Admitted  to  the  bar  in  1830,  and  practiced  several 
years  in  Virginia.  Removing  to  Greene  County,  Alabama 
about  1834,  he  represented  that  county  in  the  legislature  in 
1843.  Then  settling  in  Mobile,  he  was  in  the  legislature  again 
in  1849,  and  in  1857.  Until  1852  he  supported  the  Whig 
party,  which  had  been  a  very  strong  minority  party  in  Ala- 
bama. Appointed  District  Judge  before  the  Civil  War,  he 
was  reappointed  during  the  war  by  President  Davis.  Judge 
Jones  was  living  in  1872. 

Brewer,  History  and  Resources  of  Alabama,  Montgomery,  1872. 

James  D.  Ligon 

Born  in  Prince  Edward  County,  1808,  the  son  of  Thomas 
D.  Ligon.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1823;  A.  B.,  1827. 
Studied  law  in  Winchester.  Settled  on  a  plantation  in  Prince 
Edward  County,  on  Bush  River,  and  died  there  in  1884. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

James  D.  Ligon  was  a  brother  of  Thomas  Watkins  Ligon 
(Hampden  Sidney,  1830),  Governor  of  Maryland.  Governor 
Ligon  is  listed  on  this  catalogue,  since  he  was  a  student  at 
Hampden  Sidney  as  early  as  1824. 


280  [1827 

James  D.  Minge 

A  native  of  Charles  City  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, 1824.  A.  B.,  1827.  B.  L.,  William  and  Mary,  1830. 
Farmer.     Died  1843. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript. 

William  Campbell  Scott 

Born  in  Powhatan  County,  1809.  Son  of  a  Scotch  mer- 
chant [Peter  Scott]  of  large  means  settled  at  Powhatan  Court 
House.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  1823 ;  A.  B.,  1827.  B.  L., 
University  of  Virginia,  1829.  Whig  in  politics,  and  now  and 
then  in  the  legislature.  Member  of  Secession  Convention  as 
a  Union  man,  but  signed  the  Ordinance.  Colonel,  C.  S.  A. 
Died  in  Powhatan  County  the  day  Richmond  was  evacuated. 
In  his  younger  days  Mr.  Scott  took  his  turn,  at  least  once,  on 
the  old  dueling  ground  near  Powhatan  Court  House. 

Dr.  Hooper's  Manuscript,  &c. 

George  T.  H.  Swann 

In  the  History  Book  of  the  Philanthropic  Society,  George 
Swann  of  Cumberland  County  wrote  in  1827,  just  before  his 
graduation,  ' '  During  the  present  year  it  was  resolved  by  both 
societies  that  anniversary  orations  should  hereafter  be  de- 
livered in  public  on  the  day  after  commencement.  The  most 
pleasing  task  which  your  historian  has  to  perform  is  to  record 
the  rapid  and  unexampled  improvement  which  the  members 
have  shown  in  debating."  These  are  interesting  statements, 
both  of  them — anniversary  orations  and  good  debating  being 
now  rather  obsolescent.  George  Thompson  Swann  was  prob- 
ably the  grandson  of  Thompson  Swann,  clerk  of  Cumberland 
County  during  the  Revolution.  George  Swann  was  a  lawyer. 
Dr.  Richard  Mcllwaine  has  made  a  note  in  his  collection  of 
early  catalogues  that  George  Swann  was  a  Judge — circuit 
judge. 


1827]  281 

William  M.  Tredway 

b.  1809,  d.  1891.  Son  of  Moses  Tredway  of  Prince  Edward 
County,  who  was  born  in  Chesterfield  County.  Moses  Tred- 
way owned  the  'Roxbury'  farm  to  the  west  of  Hampden 
Sidney,  and  was  a  member  of  the  county  court.  William  M. 
Tredway  graduated  at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1827,  then 
studied  law  and  established  himself  in  Pittsylvania  County; 
For  a  number  of  years  he  was  Commonwealth's  attorney  of 
Pittsylvania  County;  was  a  member  of  the  Conventions  of 
1851  and  of  1861 ;  was  a  member  of  Congress  1845-1847 ;  and 
for  some  years  was  Judge  of  the  fourth  Circuit,  living  at 
Chatham.  His  son  was  the  late  Judge  James  L.  Tredway,  of 
Pittsylvania,  also  a  graduate  of  Hampden  Sidney.  Tredways 
have  been  influential  in  Hampden  Sidney  affairs  from  an  early 
period. 


George  W.  Dame 

b.  1812,  d.  1895.  George  W.  Dame,  a  nephew  of  President 
Cushing,  came  to  Hampden  Sidney  from  Eochester,  New 
Hampshire  to  begin  studies  as  a  grammar  school  boy.  He 
entered  the  Academy  attached  to  the  College  in  1824,  and 
graduated  at  the  college  in  1829.  In  1834  he  was  appointed 
assistant  to  Mr.  Cushing,  with  the  title  of  Professor  of  Geology 
and  Mineralogy.  Until  the  appointment  of  Draper  in  1836, 
Mr.  Dame  was  apparently  acting  professor  of  Natural  Philo- 
sophy.* In  1838  he  was  a  student  at  Union  Seminary,  Hamp- 
den Sidney,  preparing  for  work  as  a  minister  of  the  Episcopal 
church.  He  spent  his  life  after  1840  in  Danville,  rector  of 
Camden  Parish.  He  was  the  Bishop  of  Camden  Parish, 
known  as  a  furtherer  of  every  good  work  in  the  community. 
Dr.  Dame  (D.  D.,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1891)  served  as 
the  first  superintendent  of  public  schools  of  his  county  (Pitt- 


*Mr.  Dame  published  in  1838  (American  Quarterly  Register,  Boston) 
a  pretty  full  sketch  of  the  life  of  President  Cushing.  That  article  was 
signed  George  W.  Dame,  M.  D.,  of  Lynchburg,  Virginia. 


282  [1829 

sylvania),  from  1870  to  1882;  and  for  many  years  before  the 
end  of  our  civil  war  was  principal  of  a  school  for  girls 
at  Danville. 

Inexplicable  it  is  how  often,  how  inevitably  almost,  sound 
ideas  at  their  broaching  are  balked  or  twisted,  or  nullified, 
or  stolen,  so  to  speak. 

In  1828  Dr.  Rice,  Mr.  Cushing,  and  Richard  N.  Venable 
were  appointed  a  Committee  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  to 
prepare  a  history  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  Those  were 
three  men  whose  time  was  fully  occupied.  No  one  of  them, 
nor  the  three  of  them  together,  could  go  about  such  a  task. 
What  Mr.  Cushing  ?s  nephew  George  Dame  was  doing  from 
1829  to  1834  does  not  appear.  Maybe  he  was  teaching  school 
in  the  neighborhood.  Certainly  he  must  have  been  busy  for 
part  of  the  time,  by  commission  of  his  uncle,  in  the  assembling 
of  material  for  a  history  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  But 
the  times  were  out  of  joint.  Those  were  bad  years  all  round 
in  the  community.  In  his  old  age  Dr.  Dame  related  how  he 
had  become  greatly  interested  in  getting  together  the  facts 
for  a  history,  and  an  alumni  catalogue,  of  the  college.  He 
talked  with  early  Trustees ;  old  inhabitants ;  pupils  of  the  first 
two  Presidents,  and  others.  He  made  memoranda.  He  made 
out  "a  catalogue  of  all  the  students  who  were  ever  at  the 
college."  And  then  came  the  hitch,  and  the  twist  and  the 
nullification.  The  ground  of  the  trouble  is  not  worth  men- 
tioning. The  proceedings  in  the  matter  were  disgraceful.  The 
historian  got  in  a  righteous  huff,  turned  his  papers  over  to 
the  Secretary  of  the  Board ;  the  Secretary  bundled  the  papers 
up,  and  that  was  the  end  of  them.  Who  would  have  thought 
it  ?  But  all  that  is  a  part  of  the  history  of  Hampden  Sidney. 
And  strange  enough  it  is,  as  we  grow  out  of  the  old  rank 
prejudices,  we  regret  the  age  that  bred  them. 

Landon  Cabell  Garland 

b.  1810,  d.  1895.  Son  of  Spotswood"  Garland,  for  over  forty 
years  clerk  of  Nelson   County.     Almost  immediately   after 


1828]  283 

graduation  at  Hampden  Sidney  College,  in  1829,  he  was 
chosen  Professor  of  Natural  Sciences  at  Washington  College, 
Lexington.  He  remained  at  Lexington  until  1832,  giving 
proof  of  his  abilities  and  skill.  Those  were  disturbed  years 
at  Washington  College;  under  the  unconventional  President 
Louis  Marshall.  Going  to  Randolph  Macon  College,  just 
established,  Professor  Garland  became  President  of  that  Col- 
lege in  1835.  Thence  he  went,  in  1847,  to  the  University  of 
Alabama  (chair  of  mathematics  and  physics).  In  1847  also 
he  was  offered  the  presidency  of  William  and  Mary.  In  1855 
he  succeeded  Dr.  Manly  as  President  of  the  University  of 
Alabama,  and  thus  continued  until  the  destruction  of  the 
buildings  by  invading  troops  in  1865.  The  next  year  he  took 
charge  of  the  chair  of  physics  at  the  University  of  Mississippi, 
where  he  remained  until  the  spring  of  1875,  when  he  was  made 
Chancellor  of  the  new  Vanderbilt  University.  This  office  he 
held  until  1893.  '  I  do  not  know  of  another  professional  career 
so  long  continued  and  so  successful  in  every  way.  Of  course 
he  had  a  wiry  physique.  It  is  equally  plain  that  he  had 
superior  abilities  and  high  character. '  Chancellor  Garland 
was  very  fond  of  outdoor  sports. 

Dr.  William  H.  Ruffner,  "History  of  Washington  College,"  in 
Washington  and  Lee  Historical  Papers,  No.  6,  p.  101. 

Nathaniel  Pope  Howard 

'Of  our  elder  people,  many  can  call  back  the  time,  in  the 
autumn  of  1828  when  at  Hampden  Sidney,  crowned  with  the 
highest  honors  of  his  class,  Nathaniel  Pope  Howard,  a  Rich- 
mond boy,  passed  from  college  into  life.  A  few  weeks  ago, 
on  that  fearful  seven  and  twentieth  of  April  [1870]  in  the 
Capitol  of  his  State,  he  breathed  out  his  pure,  kind  spirit. 
Between  the  two  limits  lie  more  than  forty  years  of  a  student 's 
labor  and  a  student's  success;  a  patient,  untiring  life,  so  full 
of  wisdom  and  goodness,  so  rich  in  manly  worth,  in  work  well 
done,  in  accurate  and  prodigious  learning  as  to  give  him  title 
to  be  named  among  the  foremost  Virginians  of  our  time. 


284  [1828 

There  is  no  need  to  say  how  pure  and  high  was  his  character 
as  a  lawyer,  or  his  reputation.  There  was  not,  as  competent 
judges  have  declared,  in  America  a  counsellor  of  greater  legal 
learning  or  of  more  practiced  legal  mind.  He  was  a  juris- 
consultus  of  the  type  of  imperial  Rome.  His  arguments  were 
like  the  well-digested  page  of  a  great  commentator.  Out  of 
the  maze  of  authorities  and  precedents,  the  doctrines  at  issue 
were  evolved  with  logical  precision  and  presented  in  clear  and 
simple  harmony. 

But  there  was  another  and  a  more  neglected  department 
of  thought  and  research  for  which  his  adaptation  was,  we 
think,  more  perfect,  and  where  his  life's  work  would  have 
left  a  deeper  and  more  lasting  mark.  As  a  classical  scholar, 
in  his  full  and  critical  knowledge  of  the  Greek,  and  especially 
of  the  Latin  tongue,  and  of  their  literature,  Mr.  Howard  was, 
we  have  little  doubt,  the  most  thoroughly  learned  man  of  our 
country.  The  range  of  his  reading  was  enormous;  this,  com- 
bined with  rare  sagacity,  deep  feeling  for  style  and  a  strong 
memory,  gave  him  such  knowledge  of  the  vocabulary  and 
phraseology  of  the  classical  Latinity  as  no  American  scholar 
has  surpassed.  A  man  may  be  a  fine  verbal  scholar  whilst 
absolutely  wanting  in  the  critical  faculty.  But  Mr.  Howard, 
upon  the  basis  of  his  verbal  scholarship  made  himself  a  critic. 
The  rigor  and  masterly  power  of  his  exegesis  equalled  any- 
thing that  we  have  heard  from  the  most  famous  teachers. 

The  direct  and  natural  result  of  his  habit  of  thoughtful  and 
daily  reading,  was  his  full  and  absolute  sway  over  the  Latin 
tongue  as  the  means  of  expressing  his  own  thoughts.  He  said 
that  he  who  would  know  how  to  read,  must  know  how  to  write. 
His  own  Latin  style  was  so  simple,  so  natural,  so  purely 
idiomatic,  as  to  show  that  his  thoughts,  from  long  dwelling  on 
the  classic  models,  had  come  to  find  their  direct  and  natural 
utterance  in  the  classic  tongue.  Should  his  Commentary  on 
Lucretius  ever  be  given  to  the  public,  scholars  will,  we  are 
convinced,  be  no  less  struck  by  the  merits  of  his  Latinity  than 
by  the  wisdom  of  his  criticism. 


1829]  285 

The  grave  has  closed  over  a  great  scholar  and  a  noble  gen- 
tleman, one  whom  it  was  good  to  know.  The  purity  and 
grandeur  of  a  life  in  scholarship  have  never,  in  any  man,  been 
better  shown/ 

Thomas  R.  Price:  in  Virginia  Educational  Journal,  June,  1870, 
pp.   259-265. 

When  Mr.  Howard  entered  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Pro- 
fessor Marsh  was  teaching  the  classics;  at  the  time  of  his 
graduation,  Garland  and  Page  were  in  charge  of  that  depart- 
ment, both  pupils  of  Marsh.  It  is  known  that  Mr.  Howard 
was  introduced  to  severe  methods  of  scholarship  by  William 
Burke  and  John  Clarke,  Trinity  College  (Dublin)  men  who 
in  the  20 's  were  teaching  in  Richmond.  Edgar  Allan  Poe  and 
Nat.  Howard  were  the  foremost  Latinists  at  John  Clarke's 
Academy.  Col.  Preston  in  his  reminiscences  said,  "If  I  put 
Howard  as  a  Latinist  at  Clarke's  on  a  level  with  Poe  I  do 
him  full  justice.  Yet  with  all  his  superiorties,  Poe  was  not 
the  master  spirit,  nor  even  the  favourite  of  the  school.  I 
assign,  from  my  recollection,  this  place  to  Howard." 

Ingram's  Life  of  Poe,  pp.  16-19. 

Benjamin  Mosby  Smith 

b.  1811,  d.  1893.  Son  of  Josiah  Smith  of  ' Montrose,' 
Powhatan  County.  Entered  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1825, 
and  graduated  in  1829.  After  teaching  a  year  or  two,  and 
studying  at  Union  Seminary,  (appointed  Tutor  in  Hebrew 
while  still  a  student),  followed  work  in  the  Oriental  languages 
in  Germany,  (University  of  Halle).  In  1853,  having  been 
pastor  of  churches  at  Danville,  Staunton,  &c,  Dr.  Smith  was 
chosen  Secretary  of  the  Board  of  Publication  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church,  but  the  next  year  relinquished  that  work  for 
the  professorship  of  Oriental  literature  in  Union  Seminary 
at  Hampden  Sidney;  he  was  made  professor  emeritus  in  1891, 
after  nearly  forty  year's  tenure.  Dr.  Smith  was  one  of  the 
builders  of  Union   Seminary   in  Virginia.     He  was  closely 


286  [1829 

connected,  by  kinship  and  association,  with  John  Holt  Rice, 
(the  founder),  at  college  living  in  Dr.  Rice's  house  during 
the  earliest  years  of  Dr.  Rice's  Seminary.  In  1833,  while  a 
student  at  the  Seminary,  Dr.  Smith  compiled  a  catalogue  of 
the  library  of  the  Seminary — after  the  Civil  war  he  compiled 
another,  and  found  that  only  two  or  three  volumes  of  his 
first  list  were  missing.  In  1853,  when  Union  Seminary  was 
not  going  on  prosperously,  Dr.  Smith  began  the  business,  of 
rehabilitation.  After  the  Civil  War,  when  the  Seminary  had 
lost  all  its  money,  Dr.  Smith  secured  large  contributions  for 
its  support.  He  was  the  builder  and  manager  of  the  Seminary 
Library,  now  the  Library  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  The 
Brown  Memorial  Library  at  Hampden  Sidney  is  due  to  the 
work  of  Dr.  Smith.  Dr.  Smith  was  the  author  of  the  extra- 
ordinary Alumni  Catalogue  of  Union  Seminary. 

It  must  be  emphasized  that  Benjamin  Mosby  Smith  was  the 
pupil  of  John  Holt  Rice,  and  of  Jonathan  Cushing  the  re- 
organizer  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.  John  Holt  Rice  in- 
terested the  young  Smith  in  education  as  a  vital  power;  Mr. 
Cushing  showed  him  something  of  the  broad  field  of  science — 
the  example  of  both  was  the  example  of  men  working  for  a 
purpose,  in  the  face  of  expected  and  unusual  difficulties. 
Leaving  college  in  his  eighteenth  year,  Smith  began  teaching 
in  North  Carolina.  Soon  after,  in  1831,  the  North  Carolina 
Institute  of  Education  was  formed  at  Chapel  Hill.  "The 
objects  of  the  meeting  were  explained  by  Mr.  Benj.  M.  Smith 
of  Milton  in  an  appropriate  and  highly  interesting  address." 
In  1833  Benjamin  M.  Smith,  again  of  Hampden  Sidney,  was 
secretary  of  the  Institute  of  Education  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  an  organization  that  was  in  action  from  1833  until 
1836.  The  chief  movers  were  President  Cushing  and  Secre- 
tary Smith :  and  their  object  was  to  do  something  to  make 
conditions  better  in  the  item  of  public  elementary  schooling. 
A  few  years  later,  in  1841,  Dr.  Smith,  then  of  the  Valley  of 
Virginia,  submitted  an  elaborate  report  on  Primary  Schools 
to  the  State  Educational  Convention  of  that  year.  When  the 
new  public  school   system  was  established  in  Virginia,  Dr. 


1829]  287 

Smith  performed  for  eleven  years  the  duties  of  superintendent 
for  Prince  Edward  County.  For  fifty  years,  from  1842,  he 
served  as  a  Trustee  of  Washington  College,  Lexington.  He 
was  a  practical  man  of  ideals.  What  he  said  of  John  Holt 
Rice  was  true  of  himself — '  Next  to  his  desire  for  the  advance- 
ment of  the  church  was  his  wish  to  see  his  own  native  State 
go  forward  in  essential  virtue  and  well  contrived  public  en- 
deavor. ' 

Dr.  Smith  regarded  President  Gushing  as  the  best  teacher 
he  had  ever  seen.  When  Smith  joined  the  Freshman  class  at 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  Mr.  Cushing  had  begun  his  recon- 
struction of  the  place.  1825  was  a  notable  year  in  the  com- 
munity. The  Old  College  was  still  in  existence,  its  shabby 
rooms  full  of  under  classmen.  The  New  College  was  partly 
done,  and  Seniors  were  lodged  there.  Across  the  '  rolling 
road, '  Dr.  Rice 's  Seminary  was  going  up,  and  the  rolling  road 
was  soon  to  be  a  Via  Sacra.  It  was  something  of  a  boom  time, 
and  speculation  in  land  was  brisk.  Benjamin  Smith  came  to 
the  place  when  it  was  assuming  the  form  it  kept  for  seventy 
years  and  more.  He  could  not  know  that  he  was  to  be  one  of 
the  chief  factors  in  the  maintenance  of  that  form.  His  remi- 
niscences of  his  first  Freshman  days  are  therefore  of  especial, 
most  timely  interest — "Our  party  reached  King's  Tavern. 
Supper  was  highly  relished  and  then  we  walked  up  through 
the  woods  on  a  path  now  the  road.  The  main  carriage  road 
skirted  to  the  east,  down  hill,  across  a  muddy  bottom.  We 
all  went  to  the  Southeast  corner,  third  story,  east  wing  [New 
College]  and  there  was  the  usual  shouting  and  talking.  Our 
walk  had  brought  us  first  to  a  house  of  one  story,  supplied 
with  passage  and  attics.  This  was  the  President's  house, 
[standing  on  the  edge  of  the  orchard  opposite  the  baseball 
ground].  In  the  yard  was  a  brick  house,  a  little  west  of  the 
President's  house,  built  by  President  Cushing  for  his  own 
use.  A  little  outside  of  these  premises  was  a  two  story  house, 
with  one  room  and  a  passage  on  each  story  called  the  Library. 
This  building  contained  about  five  hundred  volumes,  and  was 
also  occupied  by  one  of  the  Professors  as  a  study.     Directly 


288  [1829 

south  of  this  house  was  the  Old  College,  a  three  story  building 
of  brick,  having  four  rooms  on  each  story  and  with  the  stair 
steps  almost  worn  out.  A  little  way  west  of  south  was  the 
Steward's  Hall,  a  one  story  wooden  structure.  On  a  path 
leading  thence  northwest  to  the  spring,  was  a  small  house 
with  a  shed  called  'The  Fort/  used  as  a  dormitory  by  two 
students/' — In  other  words,  we  have  got  along  so  far  from 
1825  that  we  shall  have  to  do  something  about  the  local  archae- 
ology. Dr.  Smith  made  no  map.  He  could  have  done  so.  He 
had  imagination.  For  the  April  Exhibition,  1829,  he  wrote 
a  comedy,  "Every  man  for  himself,"  and  acted  the  part  of 
the  Honorable  Obadiah  Testy.  At  his  graduation  in  Septem- 
ber, he  made  the  Philosophical  Oration,  which  meant  that 
Landon  Garland  was  taking  the  first  honor,  and  Benjamin 
Smith  the  second,  or  it  may  be  they  were  both  firsts. 


Jpote 


The  object  of  this  piece  of  work  has  been  to  show  in  some 
degree  what  one  of  the  colleges  of  the  State  had  accomplished 
before  the  University  began  business ;  and  to  offer  proof  that 
of  the  three  colleges  of  the  State  before  1825,  Hampden  Sid- 
ney, next  to  William  and  Mary,  was  the  most  important. 
New  built  in  1824,  after  1830  Washington  College  was  thor- 
oughly overhauled  and  outdistanced  Hampden  Sidney.  With 
1830  Randolph  Macon  started  up  (a  few  miles  away  in  Meck- 
lenburg County),  and  was  soon  pretty  strong.  Hampden  Sid- 
ney having  withstood  many  difficulties  was  in  1825  cheerfully 
beginning  a  nineteenth  century  programme.  Then  a  new 
tangle  of  problems  came  on,  (regional  problems  and  neigh- 
borhood or,  as  it  were,  family  problems),  and  the  place  was 
before  long  in  straits.  But  there  was  an  Old  College  of 
Hampden  Sidney  many  years  before  the  railroad  supervened. 
The  showing  made  in  these  pages  is  for  that  Old  College,  with 
all  its  faults  an  institution  vital  in  the  State. 

Just  before  his  death  Mr.  Cushing  reiterated :  ' '  Although 
Hampden  Sidney  College  has  had  to  encounter  many  diffi- 
culties for  want  of  funds,  yet  it  has  generally  been  in  success- 
ful operation  and  has  educated  upwards  of  2,000  young  men. 
More  instructors  have  emanated  from  this  Institution  than 
from  any  other  in  the  Southern  country.* '  [see  Martin's 
Gazetteer  of  Virginia,  Charlottesville,  1835,  p.  266].  A  hur- 
ried examination  of  these  pages  now  submitted  will  show  the 
names  of  certainly  fifty  men  who  followed  studies  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  and  were  afterwards  teachers.  We  cannot  defend 
our  old  system  of  education.  We  cannot  defend  the  modern 
system.  It  is,  however,  gratifying  to  know  that  as  long  as 
our  colleges  are  kept  up,  we  may  get  from  them  many  teachers. 
In  alarm  at  'the  cumbrous  machinery  of  public  patronage,' 
it  can  do  no  hurt  to  be  informed  a  little  of  what  went  on  in 
our  community  without  all  that. 


290 


And  finally,  attention  is  asked  to  a  few  words  written  in 
1838  (see  Farmers'  Register,  vol.  VI,  p.  292),  by  Edmund 
Ruffin,  who  knew  our  country  perhaps  better  than  any  other 
man.  Mr.  Ruffin  said:  "In  the  country  which  surrounds 
and  sustains  Hampden  Sidney  College,  there  is  found  a  pop- 
ulation whose  intellectual  and  moral  worth,  and  whose  marked 
success  as  farmers  and  men  of  business,  prove  beyond  doubt 
or  cavil  the  great  profits,  individual  and  pecuniary  as  well  as 
general  and  national,  which  the  people  have  derived  from  their 
lijberal  and  long  continued  support  of  that  college." 

From  the  record,  it  is  plain  to  see  that  the  counties  of  South- 
side  Virginia  were  sending  boys  to  college  before  1825.  And 
it  is  to  be  remembered  that  the  record  as  here  presented  is 
very  inadequate.  How  many  names  are  not  on  the  list,  no 
body  knows.  A  rough  estimate,  by  counties  [drawn  from  the 
indexes  supplied],  of  the  boys  of  Southside  Virginia  at  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  before  the  end  of  1825: 

Prince  Edward „ „.107 

Charlotte _ 70 

Cumberland 40 

Powhatan   33 

Nottoway    ... „ ....  27 

Buckingham  „ _ „... _..  26 

Campbell  [Lynchburg,  16]  „ „ 25 

Halifax  ..„ - „ „ 23 

Lunenburg    „ 19 

Amelia -...., 18 

Mecklenburg  „ „ .„ _ 17 

Dinwiddie  _ - 10 

Brunswick 7 

Pittsylvania   „ 7 

Counties  outside  Southside  Virginia  (not  listing 
any  below  7) 

Nelson  _ 21 

Albemarle >- 14 

Goochland  14 

Bedford 13 

Amherst 11 

Eichmond  City  11 

Hanover _ 7 

Louisa   _ _ 7 


North   Carolina „ „ _ 31 

South  Carolina  7 


i&osterg 


April  Exhibition.  College  terms  were  regularly  through 
1825  from  November  1st  to  May  1st,  from  June  1st  to 
October  1st.  In  April,  towards  the  close  of  the  winter 
term  there  was  an  Exhibition — speeches,  a  farce  or 
comedy,  &c. 

Commencement.    September  29th. 

Common  Hall.  The  old  Common  Hall  or  Chapel  was  a  frame 
building,  put  up  about  1785.  The  timbers  came  from 
French's  Church,  near  King's  Tavern.  This  hall  served 
as  college  church  and  chapel.  The  brick  church,  in  its 
first  form,  was  built  in  1820. 

Comparisons.  There  are  about  800  names  of  students  listed 
in  this  work.  From  1776  to  1825  William  and  Mary  lists 
about  800  names,  and  Washington  and  Lee  about  750. 
The  University  of  Virginia  opened  March  7,  1825.  There 
were,  say  120  students  that  year,  quite  enough  to  have 
closed  the  doors  of  two  of  the  old  colleges,  if  that  was  the 
way  things  worked. 

Court  House.  Prince  Edward  Court  House  was  the  place  to 
go  during  this  period.  Taverns  were  there,-  the  stage 
came  in  there;  there  were  law  students  about  the  court 
house,  lawyers,  and  orators,  horse  traders,  and  strolling 
players.  Doubtless  there  was  a  faro  bank  (or  chance  for 
a  hand  at  loo)  at  the  Court  House  often  on  court  days. 
The  postofiice  may  have  been  there — certainly  there  was 
no  postoffice  at  Hampden  Sidney  until  after  1850.  From 
1830  for  thirty  years  there  was  the  added  attraction  of 
a  celebrated  school  for  girls  near  the  court  green.  Farm- 
ville  was  nothing  until  about  1820. 


*  These  posters  would  be  more  to  the  point  if  accompanied  by  a  map. 
We  must  certainly  have  a  historical  map  of  the  place. 


292 


Curriculum.  Sonthey's  tutor  at  Balliol  said  to  him  in  1792: 
"You  won't  learn  anything  by  my  lectures,  so  if  you  have 
any  studies  of  your  own  you  had  better  pursue  them." 
There  was  a  ponderous  curriculum  at  Hampden  Sidney 
before  1825,  as  at  Washington  College,  that  contemporary 
foundation. 

Diets.  Diets  varied.  In  1777,  before  adjourning  for  five 
years,  the  Board  ordered :  ' '  for  breakfast,  bread  and  milk, 
the  remainder  of  their  breakfast  may  be  of  meats,  or  some 
agreeable  light  dish;  and  for  their  dinners,  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  meats  with  vegetables  or  sauce,  as  they  re- 
quire; or  such  other  diets  as  may  be  agreeable  to  the 
students  and  approved  by  the  Trustees — their  suppers 
the  same  as  their  breakfast."  Breakfast  at  8,  dinner  at  1, 
supper  at  8.  Not  long  after  1825,  morning  chapel  was 
at  thirty  minutes  after  sunrise,  and  breakfast  was  at  6. 

Dissent.  Bishop  Meade's  account  of  the  sad  state  of  the 
Church  of  England  in  Virginia  is  not  now  taken  at  face 
value  by  his  brethren  in  Virginia:  many  of  them  assert 
indignantly  that  the  evidence  can  be  produced  to  show 
that  the  church  in  Virginia  was  active  and  worthily  at 
work  up  to  the  disorganizations  of  the  Revolution.  There 
is  something  to  be  said  for  this  revised  interpretation, 
and  on  the  local  facts  as  shown  in  the  Vestry  Book  of 
St.  Patrick's  Parish  (now  preserved  at  Alexandria  Semi- 
nary). It  is  remarkable  that  Bishop  Meade's  account  of 
St.  Patrick's  Parish  suppresses,  as  it  were,  the  record  of 
progress  made  by  the  vestry.  It  is  plain  that  Bishop 
Meade  did  not  have  the  Vestry  Book  before  him  when 
he  wrote;  his  statement  is  largely  the  statement  of  some 
one,  half  Episcopalian  and  half  Presbyterian — the  writer 
seems  almost  to  be  posing  as  an  Episcopalian.  This  is  a 
very  important  matter  and  should  be  set  right  as  far  as 
possible.  The  origins  of  Hampden  Sidney  are  too  inter- 
esting to  be   allowed  to   go  cloaked  in   misconceptions. 


293 


As  a  matter  of  fact  the  establishment  of  Hampden 
Sidney  was  revolutionary  business,  and  it  is  really  rather 
surprising  that  Peter  Johnston,  a  member  of  the  vestry 
of  St.  Patrick's  Parish,  should  have  been  willing  to  en- 
courage the  enterprise.  Nathaniel  Venable,  clerk  to  the 
vestry  for  a  number  of  years,  was  by  old  inheritance  a 
dissenter.  The  Vestry  Book  shows  that  the  Church  of 
England  was  quite  active  in  the  parish  up  to  the  Revo- 
lution; the  church  was  well  supported  and  served  by 
ministers  of  character,  James  Garden  and  James  Macart- 
ney. Bishop  Meade  knew  nothing  of  Macartney.  Note 
this  most  interesting  minute  in  the  vestry 's  proceedings : 
"Nov.  10,  1761— Whereas  the  upper  church,  [Buffalo 
Church]  is  situate  among  the  dissenters,  the  Vestry  hath 
thought  proper  the  service  at  that  church  to  cease  from 
this  time,  and  that  the  Revd.  Mr.  Garden  have  notice  of 
the  same,  and  the  clerk  and  sexton."  That  is  to  say,  Mr. 
Sankey  and  his  regular  Old  School  Presbyterians  had 
pretty  well  taken  the  Buffalo  District  during  the  three 
or  four  years  before  1761.  St.  Patrick's  Vestry,  without 
any  ill-tempered  remarks,  let  go  of  that  territory  and  at 
once  took  steps  elsewhere.  Before  the  end  of  the  year 
the  vestry  had  arranged  for  a  new  church  at  Sandy  River, 
to  replace  an  old  church ;  for  a  new  church  in  a  new  place, 
viz.  French 's  church  at  Kingsville ;  and  for  a  new  chapel 
in  the  western  end  of  the  parish.  The  two  churches  were 
to  be  24x48,  with  a  16ft.  pitch,  commodious  enough.  Mr. 
James  Garden,  minister  of  the  parish,  died  early  in  1773. 
He  was  succeeded  toward  the  end  of  the  year  by  James 
Macartney,  of  Granville  Parish,  North  Carolina,  a  man 
thoroughly  recommended  both  for  conduct  and  scholar- 
ship. Mr1.  Macartney  was  particularly  well  regarded  by 
Governor  Tryon,  who  had  a  good  eye  for  character.  It 
is  not  unlikely  that  James  Macartney  was  the  writer 
signing  himself  "Luther"  in  the  Virginia  Gazette,  in 
opposition  to  the  plans  for  founding  Hampden  Sidney. 
Mr.  Macartney  had  been  assistant  master  in  the  Newbern 


294 


Academy,  an  excellent  endowed  school  begun  in  1764  by 
Thomas  Thomlinson  of  Thursby,  Cumberland  (north  of 
England).     Macartney  was  a  native  of  Ireland. 

Something  for  nothing  is  not  the  rule.  If  young  Sam : 
Smith  (member  of  Prince  Edward  County  Committe  of 
Safety)  and  young  Blair  Smith  had  not  been  fighting 
men,  Hampden  Sidney  could  not  have  been  established. 
Presbytery  was  behind  them,  but  Presbytery,  of  course, 
could  take  no  outright  stand  in  1775  or  for  that  matter 
in  1783.  Presbytery  represented  a  foreign  element  in 
Virginia,  and  had  to  prove  up  by  brains,  by  genuine 
piety  and  industry.  The  Baptists  were  the  old  native 
Virginia  Independents.  John  Wesley  showed  those  of 
the  church  of  England  in  America,  who  were  willing  to 
learn,  how  they  might  set  up  an  American  church.  The 
Presbyterians  were  Scots.  Had  it  not  been  for  Davies 
they  might  have  gained  hardly  any  footing  in  Eastern 
Virginia  before  the  Revolution.  But  Davies,  dead  in 
1761,  had  already  made  Hampden  Sidney  possible. 

There  is  no  discussing  religion  itself.  Either  you  have 
it,  or  you  have  it  not.  But  the  organizations  and  the 
paraphernalia  of  religion  are  most  fitly,  most  importantly 
matters  of  discussion.  Samuel  Davies  performed  a  great 
service.  He  came  to  Virginia,  where  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land was  better  fixed  than  anywhere  else  in  the  colonies, 
and  made  it  perfectly  plain  to  the  governors  of  Virginia 
that  any  programme  of  theirs  looking  to  the  exclusion  of 
the  church  of  Scotland  was  not  only  mistaken  in  law  but 
practically  foolish.  Then  the  French  war  helped  greatly 
towards  encouraging  the  American  Idea  in  Virginia.  The 
Revolution  once  begun,  the  American  Idea  grew  almost 
riotously.  So  the  circumstances  of  the  founding  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College,  in  the  years  1774,  1775,  and  1776,  are 
of  very  great  interest.  Had  the  college  not  been  estab- 
lished then,  progress  of  the  Revolution  would  have  pre- 
vented establishment.  As  it  was,  progress  of  the  Revo- 
lution almost  extinguished  even  the  chartered  institution. 


295 


How  came  Hampden  Sidney  College  to  be  founded  in 
those  years,  by  Presbyterians  and  yet  not  by  Presby- 
terians? Peter  Johnston,  donor,  was  no  advocate  of  the 
Revolution.  It  has  been  said  the  land  he  gave  the 
Academy  was  not  the  best  land  he  had.  That  is  not  the 
point.  The  picturesque  showing  for  those  wonderful 
years  is  that  an  American  college  was  founded  in  Prince 
Edward  County,  Virginia,  on  land  of  a  rather  un-Ameri- 
can old  gentleman — first  foundation  at  the  opening  of 
the  Revolution  and  charter  by  the  State  the  year  of  the 
Peace :  most  opportune,  most  interesting,  most  significant. 

Fives.  This  is  the  only  game  mentioned  in  the  early  records. 
Students  were  fond  of  keeping  dogs,  now  and  then  horses, 
and  sometimes  other  peoples'  pigs  or  cows.  Gaudeamus 
igitur. 

Frontispiece.  "The  engraving,  the  frontispiece  of  this 
volume  is  a  copy  of  one  found  among  the  papers  of  a 
lady  who  in  her  young  days  was  a  member  of  the  con- 
gregation and  also  of  the  church  under  the  care  of  Mr. 
Davies  in  Hanover.  She  lived  to  the  advanced  age  of 
about  ninety  years.  The  Rev.  Dr.  William  S.  White 
[Hampden  Sidney,  1824]  was  her  nephew.  Upon  search- 
ing a  few  years  since  among  the  old  lady's  mementos  and 
keepsakes  and  papers  which  had  been  carefully  preserved 
by  the  family,  this  picture  was  found  and  recognized  as 
the  one  she  so  highly  prized.  Sometimes,  Dr.  White 
remembers,  the  old  lady  would  get  from  her  cabinet  of 
mementos  a  little  gilded  frame  with  the  face  of  a  man, 
and  set  it  before  her,  and  read  the  sermons  of  Davies 
with  deep  emotion.  Dr.  W.  remembers  such  expressions 
as — 'Dear  man!  how  like  him!  I  can  hear  his  voice  as 
I  read'." — Statement  of  Dr.  Cortlandt  Van  Rensselaer, 
editor  of  the  Presbyterian  Magazine,  in  vol.  Ill  (1853) 
of  that  magazine,  p.  570.  Dr.  Van  Rensselaer  had  in  his 
youth  been  a  resident  of  Hampden  Sidney,  a  student  at 
the  Seminary  there.    He  was  very  familiar  with  the  ter- 


296 


ritory  of  Davies  in  Virginia.  He  tjould  not  be  altogether 
certain  that  this  was  the  likeness  of  Davies.  "The  editor 
does  not  deny,"  he  said,  "that  this  may  be  Davies,  but 
he  confesses  that  he  is  not  free  from  doubt.  On  this 
account  no  name  has  been  added  to  the  engraving.  Anti- 
quarians will  probably  be  able  to  throw  light  on  the  sub- 
ject. The  testimony  of  the  good  lady  is  quite  decisive  as 
to  the  point  that  the  portrait  resembles  Davies.  This 
gives  it  value  even  if  it  be  an  engraving  of  some  other 
person. ' '  Dr.  Foote  seems  to  have  accepted  this  as  a 
portrait  of  Davies,  At  any  rate,  it  is  interesting  to  have 
what  evidence  there  is  regarding  a  portrait  generally 
supposed  to  be  that  of  Davies. 

Davies,  of  course,  was  the  founder  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College.  But  for  him  the  milieu  would  have  been  quite 
impossible  that  way.  In  1823,  when  Dr.  Rice  was  arguing 
points  of  church  history  with  Bishop  Ravenscroft  and  the 
revived  Episcopal  organization,  Dr.  Rice  said,  to  show 
somewhat  where  he  stood:  "About  eighty  years  ago  a 
train  of  remarkable  providences  brought  into  the  colony 
of  Virginia  the  Rev.  Samuel  Davies,  a  man  who  would 
have  done  honor  to  any  church  in  any  age.  The  Estab- 
lishment was  then  in  its  vigor.  The  energy  of  that  dis- 
tinguished man,  however,  succeeded  in  securing  the  pro- 
tection of  the  law  to  the  Presbyterian  Church  which  was 
then  organized  in  the  colony.  [That  is  to  say,  in  the 
eastern  parts  of  the  colony.]  The  progress  of  this  Society 
in  Virginia  in  later  times  has  been  so  slow  that  one  can 
scarcely  believe  the  accounts  of  its  rapid  growth  in  the 
days  of  Davies  and  his  compeers."  First  Davies,  one 
might  say,  then  Rice. 

Illustration.  Under  Frontispiece  has  been  given  an  especial 
explanation  of  the  portrait  of  Davies.  It  will  be  set  forth 
here  why  in  a  biographical  account  chiefly  of  alumni  none 
of  their  pictures  appears,  but  only  portraits  of  head  men 
of  the  establishment.     The  reason  is  simple.     It  would 


297 


have  required  more  time  and  patience  than  were  at  com- 
mand to  assemble  many  portraits  of  these  alumni,  and  a 
mere  scattering  of  such  pictures,  while  interesting,  would 
have  been  poorly  representative.  The  text  is  the  thing, 
after  all.  Even  Carlyle,  who  wanted  to  scrutinize  a  por- 
trait of  every  personage  he  dealt  with,  printed  hardly  any 
in  his  books.  And  then  again  these  men,  whose  portraits 
you  have  here  after  that  of  Davies,  ran  the  place  made 
possible  by  Davies.  If  they  had  not  been  in  charge,  it  is 
probable  enough  that  others  would  have  been,  but  that  is 
no  more  than  saying  that  Hampden  Sidney  the  place,  it 
is  quite  conceivable,  might  have  shown  a  very  different 
career.  These  men  ran  the  place,  and  in  so  far  were  the 
place.  It  is  useless  to  enter  into  elucidation  of  obscure 
causes  and  non-apparent  but  powerful  influences.  Samuel 
Stanhope  Smith  may  have  left  the  place  because  he  did 
not  like  the  cook,  and  Dr.  Hoge  may  have  come  because 
he  married  in  the  neighborhood.  Who  the  janitors  were 
during  the  period,  we  cannot  say.  It  is  well-known  that 
an  efficient,  or  just  a  characterful  janitor  may  be  almost 
the  boss  of  any  such  institution.  The  part  of  the  Trustees 
has  been  recorded  elsewhere. 

John  Blair  Smith  in  portraiture  here  may  stand  for 
the  two  Smiths — himself  and  his  brother.  Samuel  Stan- 
hope Smith  was  not  the  founder.  He  came  at  a  time  when 
the  mounting  optimism  of  the  Revolution  was  rather  high, 
fell  in  with  the  trend  of  the  times  there  (an  admirable 
young  man  for  the  moment),  and  left  when  discourage- 
ments were  formidable.  John  Blair  Smith  saw  the  place 
through,  from  beginnings  in  revolution,  on  to  new  estab- 
lishment by  revolution  and  sore  perplexities  consequent. 
The  human  mind  is  not  to  be  held  by  charter.  John  Blair 
Smith,  like  other  revolutionists,  had  to  face  unexpected 
results  and  turns  and  twists.  Mr.  Jefferson  heard  from 
John  Eppes  that  "Smith  had  abandoned  Hampden  Sid- 
ney." Mr.  Jefferson  never  perhaps  comprehended  some 
of  the  striking  moral  effects  of  the  revolution  he  had 


298 


helped  to  negotiate ;  but  it  cannot  be  denied  that  he  was 
very  much  an  agent  in  assuring  play  to  the  diversity  of 
moral  effect  incalculable  from  the  Revolution.  Archibald 
Alexander,  a  single-minded  Christian  man  of  wonderful 
balance  of  character,  re-established  Hampden  Sidney  out 
of  something  of  a  welter  of  ecstasy  and  rationalism  at 
odds,  the  beckoning  West  and  Southwest  also  at  the  time 
making  the  region  restless.  Dr.  Van  Rensselaer  had 
heard  at  Hampden  Sidney  or  somewhere  that  "the  insti- 
tution never  had  as  many  students  as  during  Alexander's 
administration.  Coming  to  the  college  when  it  was  at 
its  lowest  point  of  depression,  he  was  permitted  to  see  it 
rise  to  its  highest  prosperity. ' '  Dr.  Van  Rensselaer  men- 
tions "the  eagle  quickness  of  Alexander's  eye  and  the 
calm  confidence  of  his  spirit/ '  [Presbyterian  Magazine, 
II,  25-34.]  Dr.  Hoge,  receiving  a  college  from  Alexander 
and  Rice,  (who  had  found  none),  maintained  the  place 
and  gave  it  the  stamp  of  a  church  school — anomalous, 
18th  century,  but  reputable  and  viable.  Certainly,  Hamp- 
den Sidney  for  a  good  many  years  was  Dr.  Hoge,  whose 
administration  was  the  first  of  its  kind  there  and  the  last 
for  about  a  hundred  years.  Dr.  Rice  and  Mr.  Cushing 
modernized  the  place,  the  one  with  the  moral  effects  of 
the  Revolution  in  view,  the  other  as  a  layman  keen  for 
science.  The  picture  of  Mr.  Cushing 's  plant  is  that  found 
in  Howe's  Historical  Collections,  say  of  1840.  It  is  to 
be  regretted  that  the  artist,  Henry  Howe  himself,  of  New 
England,  did  not  take  in  more  of  the  landscape;  and  it 
is  strange  that  there  is  nothing  to  show  in  illustration 
of  the  Old  College,  and  that  this  seems  to  be  the  only 
drawing  of  the  New  College  coming  down  from  that  era. 
It  looks  as  if  Cushing  and  Draper  between  them  might 
have  done  better  than  that.  Maybe  they  did.  Dr.  Rice's 
plant  fared  more  illustriously  in  this  respect,  but  not  until 
1850 — temp.  Professor  Sterling  or  Dr.  Joseph  Wilson — 
this  picture  being  taken  from  a  print  in  Dr.  Sampson's 
Inaugural  Address. 


299 


July  4th.  The  college  being  in  session  during  July,  July  4th 
was  a  great  day.  The  literary  societies  had  their  orators, 
and  the  revolutionary  soldiers  of  the  neighborhood  were 
assembled.  There  was  much  good  cheer,  and  members  of 
the  faculty  even  were  sometimes  ^involved  in  too  many 
toasts. 

Library  House.  House  for  a  library  and  for  the  philosophical 
apparatus  was  put  up  about  1803.  This  had  disappeared, 
along  with  most  of  the,  Old  College  plant,  before  1840. 

LL.  D.  Mrst  doctorate  conferred  September  29,  1825.  The 
institution  showed  a  surprising  restraint  in  these  matters 
during  its  first  half  century. 

New  College.  The  New  College,  i.  e.,  Cushing  Hall,  was 
building  from  1822  to  1830.  The  east  wing  and  middle 
block  were  done  before  the  end  of  1822.  After  the  west 
wing  was  added,  the  Old  College  was  used  for  awhile  as 
the  Grammar  House  or  School,  and  was  then  pulled  down 
to  make  a  new  president's  house.  [For  description  of 
Old  College,  see  article,  B.  M.  Smith.] 

Seminary.  Dr.  Rice's  Seminary,  like  the  New  College,  went 
up  by  installments,  as  money  came  in — first  the  east  end 
1823-1824;  and  then  the  middle  block  and  west  end  to- 
wards 1831.  Hampden  Sidney  began  to  shift  its  base 
around  1825,  junking  the  old  landmarks. 

Springs.  There  were  several  springs  near  the  college,  one  of 
them  called  the  ' College  Spring.'  But  there  must  have 
•  been  a  well  or  two  for  the  larger  supply.  Those  who  chose 
the  site  knew  what  air,  water,  and  watersheds  are.  The 
health  of  the  place  has  been  wonderfully  good,  both  in 
term  time  and  vacation. 

Steward.  List  of  stewards  is  about  as  follows :  Capt.  Phile- 
mon Holcombe,  Mr.  Young,  Capt.  William  Bibb,  Major 
Overstreet,  to  1783 ;  Major  Morton  to  1794 ;  Mr.  Charles 


300 


Jones,  Mr.  Nat.  Jarney  to  1800;  Mr.  Moses  Tredway  to 
1813;  then  Mr.  Thomas  E.  Miller  for  a  short  time;  and 
Col.  Armistead  Burwell  for  ten  years  after  1820. 

Stores.  There  seems  to  have  been  no  regular  merchandising 
at  Hampden  Sidney  for  many  years.  There  were  mer- 
chants at  the  Court  House;  there  was  Major  Morton's 
store,  half  way  to  Kingsville,  until  after  1815 ;  there  was 
Wood's  store,  from  1812,  a  little  farther  on  towards 
Kingsville ;  from  about  1825  there  was  the  very  active 
business  of  Thweatt,  Anderson  and  Miller,  near  Kings- 
ville (just  this  side).  The  college  owned  Kingsville  until 
after  1825,  rented  out  a  store  and  a  tavern  there.  It  was 
a  rather  complicated  business  for  a  college  to  run  a  tavern 
in  those  days.  We  cannot  comprehend  the  old  times. 
Business  and  manufacturing  were  in  the  country.  The 
country  was  full  of  movement  and  various  life.  There 
are  awful  penalties  about  standardization. 

Trustees.  Through  1825  there  were  seventy-five  Trustees, 
five  of  them  Presidents  of  the  institution  and  therefore 
members  of  the  Board.  You  could  not  well  go  to  town 
for  a  Trustee  then.  Of  the  seventy  non-teaching  Trus- 
tees, the  distribution  was  thus:  Prince  Edward,  31; 
Charlotte,  14;  Cumberland,  7;  Amelia  and  Nottoway,  4. 
Lunenburg,  Powhatan,  Halifax,  Amherst,  2  each;  Buck- 
ingham, Albemarle,  Bedford,  Campbell,  Orange,  Louisa, 
1  each. 


3Lt0t 


Adams,  Thomas  J . ,  1823 Dinwiddle 

Aiken,  Richard,  1825 Petersburg 

Alexander,  John  M.,  1815 Rockbridge 

Allen,  Abraham  M.,  1823 Prince  Edward 

(M.  D.,   (Phil.  Soc.  Cat.)    ) 

Allen,  Cary  C,  1811 Prince  Edward 

Allen,  Daniel,  1806 , , Cumberland 

(Note  Daniel  A.  Allen,  House  of  Delegates,  Cumberland,  1811) 

Allen,  Thomas,  1807 Prince  Edward 

Allen,  William,  1806 _ Prince  Edward 

Allen,  William  A.,  1802,  A.  B Cumberland 

(?)  Anderson,  Edward,  1809 Chesterfield  (?) 

Anderson,  Michael,  1810 .._ 

Anderson,  Robert  N.,  1818 Cumberland 

Aderson,  Samuel  C,  1814 Cumberland 

Anderson,  Thomas  H.,  1818 , 

Andrews,  Nathaniel,  1812 ». 

Anthony,  James  C,  1824 Lynchburg 

Archer,  John  Y.,  1825 Amelia 

Archer,  Napoleon,  1822 Chesterfield 

Archer,  William  S.,  1805 Amelia 

Armistead,  Jesse  S.,  1823,  A.  B ...Cumberland 

Armistead,  John,  1823 

Atkinson,  Thomas,  1825,  A.  B Dinwiddie 

Baber,  James,  1816 Hanover 

Bacon,  George  L.  G.,  1814 Nottoway 

Bacon,  James,  1814 Lunenburg  ( ?) 

Bacon,  James  E.  P.,  1822 Nottoway 

Baker,  Daniel,  1813 Liberty  County,  Georgia 

Baker,  John  O.,  1819 Georgia  (?) 

Baker,  Joseph  S.,  1822 _ Savannah,  Georgia 

Ballentine,  Francis  G.,  1813 

*In  these  lists  the  year  is  the  last  year  of  residence;   and  if  there  is 
any  biographical  sketch  it  will  be   found  under  that   year  in  the  text. 


302 


Barbour,  E.  P.,  1823„„ __ Orange 

Barksdale,  Claiborne,  1801 _ Halifax 

Barksdale,  John,  1825,  A.  B.„ Albemarle 

Baptist,  Edward,  1813 _ Mecklenburg 

Baptist,  Richard  H.,  1813 _ Mecklenburg 

Barnes,  Arthur  L.,  1824 Essex 

Barnes,  Enos  H.,  1823..„ _ Lunenburg 

(Litchfield,  Connecticut,  Law   School,  1826) 

Barr,  William  H.,  1801,  A.  B North  Carolina 

Bartlett,  Francis,  1825,  A.  B Athens,  Ohio 

Bass,  William  E.,  1808 *. Amelia 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1812) 

Batte,  Green  H.,  1809 Prince  George 

Batte,  Thomas  C,  1808 .*........ Prince  George 

Beale,  Charles  T.,  1825 Botetourt 

Bedford,  Henry,  1818 „ Charlotte 

Bedford,  Stephen,  1825 Charlotte 

Bedford,  William  I.  B.,  1817 Charlotte 

Bell,  William,  1808 „ Bedford 

( ?)  Benton,  John  W.,  1812 „ 

Berkeley,  Peyton  R.?  1824,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Berryman, ,  1816 „ 

Billups,  Robert,  1806 _ Lunenburg 

Bland,  Peter  Randolph,  1819 Nottoway 

Blauvelt,  C.  C,  1824 New  Brunswick,  New  Jersey 

Boggs,  William  J.,  1824 Norfolk  (?) 

Bolling,  Edward,  1823 _ Lynchburg 

Bolling,  Lenaeus,  1813 Buckingham 

Bolling,  Philip  A.,  1825 - Buckingham 

Bolling,  Robert,  1812 Buckingham 

(See  Life  of  Daniel  Baker,  p.  60) 

Booker,  Edward,  1800 Amelia  or  Prince  Edward 

Booker,  Daniel,  1811 Charlotte 

Booker,  George,  1807 Prince  Edward 

Booker,  Richard,  1 808 Ameli  a 

(Note  Richard  Booker,  House  of  Delegates,  Amelia,  1823-1834) 

Booker,  Samuel,  1808 _ Charlotte 

Booker,  William  B.,  1808 _ Amelia 


303 


Booker,  William  L . ,  1825 „ Amelia 

Boswell,  George,  1824 . Petersburg 

Boswell,  Thomas,  1822 , Petersburg 

Boyd,  David,  1822 . .Pittsylvania 

Branch,  Samuel,  1807 _ Chesterfield 

Branch,  William  D.,  1821 Amherst 

Britton,  William  G.,  1825 Halifax 

Brodnax,  William  H.,  1804 Brunswick 

Brookes,  James  H.,  1819 „ North  Carolina 

Brown,  Stephen  Bedford,  1813 Charlotte 

Brown,  Thomas  R.,  1823 .. Amherst 

Brown,  William,  1812 Mecklenburg 

Bruce,  James  C .,  1822 Halifax 

Buck,  Marcus,  1808 , .. 

(Note  Marcus  C.  Buck,  M.  D.,  Univ.  Pennsylvania,  1812) 

Burns,  Isaac,  1812,  A.  B ...... North  Carolina  (?) 

Burton,  J  [esse]  ,  1824 „ Lynchburg 

Burwell,  John,  1826 Prince  Edward 

Burwell,  Powell,  1823...... „ ....... Prince  Edward 

Burwell,  Robert,  1823,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Cabell,  Benjamin  W.  S.,  1807 Buckingham 

Cabell,  Edward  A.,  1820 - „ Nelson 

(William  and  Mary,  1819) 

Cabell,  John  B.,  1824 . Lynchburg 

Cabell,  John  N.,  1823 ...Lynchburg 

Cabell,  Joseph  M.,  1805 „ Buckingham 

Cabell,  Nathaniel  F.,  1825 Nelson 

Cabell,  Nicholas  C,  1813 ......Buckingham 

Cabell,  Patrick  H.,  1822 Nelson 

Cabell,  William  S.,  1804 Nelson 

Cabell,  William  J.  L.,  1825.....: Lynchburg 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825-26) 

Caldwell,  Hugh,  1821 Pennsylvania 

Caldwell,  Thomas,  181 5 „ Pennsylvania 

Camden,  Peter  G. ,  1820 „... Amherst 

Campbell,  John  N.,  1818 Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Carrington,  Benjamin  M.,  1818 _ Cumberland 


304 


Carrington,  Clement,  1806 

Carrington,  Clement,  1810 

Carrington,  Edward,  1806 

Carrington,  Edward,  1816 _ Cumberland 

Carrington,  Henry,  1811 „ Charlotte 

Carrington,  Littleberr y,  1 804 Cumberland 

Carrington,  N.  J.,  1825 ..Cumberland 

Carrington,  Paul,  1806 :...... 

Carrington,  Paul  C,  1816 „ Charlotte 

Carrington,  Robert  S.,  1815 Charlotte 

Carrington,  William,  1810 

Carrington,  William  W. ,  1824 Halifax 

Carter,  Archibald,  1816 Prince  Edward 

Carter,  Champe,  1824 Nelson 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825-28) 

Carter,  Robert  H.,  1824 Albemarle 

( ?)  Carter,  Theodoric  A.,  1818 Prince  Edward 

Carter,  William,  1817 Prince  Edward 

Caruthers,  Eli  W.,  1815 North  Carolina 

Carver,  Joseph  W. ,  1 820 Goochland 

Cary,  Wilson  M.,  1822 Fluvanna 

Chambers,  Edward,  1810 Lunenburg 

Chambers,  Henry,  1806 Mecklenburg 

Chambers,  Robert,  1806 Mecklenburg 

Chambers,  Thomas,  1813 Lunenburg 

(Note  Thomas  Chambers,  House  of  Delegates,  Lunenburg,  1822) 

Chambers,  William,  1810 Lunenburg 

Cheadle,  Ish am  Randolph,  1 8 18 

Chellis,  Josiah  E.,  1824 Concord,  New  Hampshire 

Childress,  John  S.,  1816 

Chittenden,  William  B.,  1824,  A.  B Cayuga,  New  York 

Christian,  John  H.,  1825 Buckingham 

(Unversity  of  Virginia,  1837    (?)    ) 

Clapper,  John,  1815 Jefferson  City,  Missouri  (1850) 

Clarke,  Christopher,  1816 Bedford 

Clarke,  John  H.,  1824,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Clarke,  Samuel,  1823 : Richmond 


305 


Clarke,  William  H.,  1823,  A.  B Halifax 

Clauselle,  John  B.,  1820,  A.  B Mecklenburg 

Clopton,  E.,  1823 Charlotte 

Cobbs,  Lewis,  1808 

Cobbs,  Meriwether,  (?)  1811 Buckingham 

Cobbs,  Meriwether  Lewis,  1823 Campbell 

Cocke,  Chastain,  1823 . Powhatan 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1824) 

Cocke,  (Coke?),  John  H.,  1817 Nottoway 

Cochran,  Isaac,  1822 Vermont 

Coleman,  Thomas  G.,  1817 _ Halifax 

Coles,  Walter,  1805 Pittsylvania 

Coles,  Walter,  1823 Albemarle 

Collier,  John,  1811 Prince  Edward 

Converse,  John  K.,  1827 _ New  Hampshire 

Cook,  Benjamin,  1805 

Cook,  William  G.,  1826 Richmond 

(M.  D.,  University  of  Maryland,  1833) 

Cooper,  Edmund  B.,  1811 

Copeland,  Benjamin,  1805 Richmond  (?) 

Cowan,  William  Bowie,  1804 Lunenburg 

Craig,  George,  1802 : Lunenburg 

Craghead,  George,  1813 .Pittsylvania 

Cralle,  Richard  K.,  1819 - Lunenburg 

Crane,  David,  1822 Cayuga,  New  York 

Crawford,  Beverly,  1823 _ Louisa 

Crawford,  Reuben,  1815 

Crawford,  William  S.,  1805 Amherst 

Crenshaw,  John,  1817 Charlotte 

Crenshaw,  Thomas,  1825 Buckingham 

(Cat.  1824) 

( ?)  Cross,  John,  1812 

Crump,  Abner,  1804 Powhatan 

Crump,  Benedict,  1825 -...New  Kent 

(University  of  Virginia,  1826) 

Crutcher,  George  C,  1812 _ Charlotte 

Cummins,  Bbenezer,  1801,  A.  B North  Carolina 


306 


Cushing,  Jonathan  P.:  (see  1825) _ 

Dabney,  A.  H.,  1824 

Dabney,  George  E.,  1826,  A.  B Campbell 

Dabney,  John  B.,  1811,  A.  B _ Campbell 

Dame,  George  W.,  1829,  A.  B Rochester,  New  Hampshire 

(Entered  Academy,  1824) 

Daniel,  James  B.,  1825 Mecklenburg 

Daniel,  William,  Jr.,  1826,  A.  B Lynchburg 

Daugherty,  John,  1801 

Davis,  Ashley,  1807 -Petersburg 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1811) 

Davis,  Charles,  1825 Lynchburg 

Davis,  Thomas,  1820,  A.  B.  ( ?) North  Carolina  ( ?) 

Dawson,  Burwell,  1825 Madison,  Georgia 

Deane,  Francis  B.,  1812 „ Cumberland 

De  Grappenreid,  Edward,  1813 Lunenburg 

De  Graffenreid,  Joseph,  1806 Lunenburg 

(Note  Joseph  De  Graff enried,  House  of  Delegates,  Lunenburg) 

Dennis,  J.  H.,  1813 - 

Dillon,  Edward,  1815 „ Prince  Edward 

Dillon,  James,  1816 _ _ Prince  Edward 

Dillon,  James  H.,  1822 LPrince  Edward 

Dillon,  John  G.,  1825_ Prince  Edward 

Dillon,  William,  1816 Prince  Edward 

Dismukes,  John  T.,  1809 'North  Carolina,  1829' 

(Note  in  Philanthropic  Society  Catalogue) 
In  1811  Paul  Dismukes  was  living  in  Prince  Edward  County 

Dodson,  Nathaniel,  1812 Prince  Edward 

Drew,  Henry,  1806 Cumberland  ( ?) 

Drummond,  Charles  H.,  1823 Amherst 

Dudley,  James,  1825 Vernon,  Maine 

Dunbar,  William,  1815 Mississippi  ( ?)  :  Winchester  ( ?) 

(Note  William  Dunbar  of  Mississippi,  M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania) 

Duncan,  James,  1821..._ 

Dunscombe,  Andrew  B.,  1809 Richmond  (?) 

Dupuy,  Joel  W.,  1822 _ Prince  Edward 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1827) 


307 


Dupuy,  Joseph,  1809 Prince  Edward 

Dupuy,  William  J.,  1810 Prince  Edward 

Eaton,  Nathaniel  M.,  1824 North  Carolina 

Eaton,  Thomas,  1823 i North  Carolina 

Edie,  Joseph  S.,  1825,  A.  B Athens,  Ohio 

Edmunds,  Edwin,  1800 _ Brunswick 

Edmunds,  John  Flood,  1815 , Brunswick 

Eggleston,  Edmund,  1823 ., -...Amelia 

Elcan,  Joshua,  1812 Buckingham 

(Note  Joshua  Elcan,  Buckingham,  Washington  and  Lee,  1806-1807) 

Elliott,  Edward  J.,  1818 Charlotte 

Elliott,  William  H.,  1816 Charlotte 

(  Ellis,  Powhatan,  1812 ) 

Ellis,  Thomas  H.,  1800 Amherst 

Epes,  Thomas  Roper,  1808 : Nottoway 

Epes,  Travis  H. ,  1824 Nottoway 

Epes,  William  D.,  1820 Nottoway 

Erwin,  John  McK.,  1818 North  Carolina 

Ewing,  John  D.,  1809,  A.  B Rockingham 

Eyre,  Robert,  1825 

Fitzgerald,  George,  1827,  A.  B Nottoway 

Fitzgerald,  John,  1825 , Nottoway 

Fitzgerald,  William,  1828,  A.  B Nottoway 

Fleming,  John  S.,  1812 Louisa 

(Note  John  S.  Fleming,  House  of  Delegates,  Louisa,  1816) 

Flournoy,  Bernard,  1808 

('General  Bernard  Flournoy  of  Georgia' — Hooper) 

Flournoy,  David,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Flournoy,  Henry  W.,  1825,  A.  B Powhatan 

Flournoy,  John  J.,  1825 .Powhatan 

Flournoy,  Samuel  B . ,  1808 Nottoway 

Flournoy,  Thomas,  1823 Prince  Edward 

Foster,  Henry,  1825 „ .Winchester 

Foster,  J.  L.,  1813 _ 

Foster,  Patrick  H.,  1813 

Fowlkes,  Edward  M.,  1808 Halifax 

Fretwell,  Richard,  1822 Albemarle 


308 


Friend,  Charles  W.,  1818 Chesterfield 

Friend,  Edward  0.,  1817 Chesterfield 

Fulton,  Andrew  S.,  1821 Augusta 

Fulton,  John  H.,  1818 Augusta 

Fulton,  John  M.,  1822 Prince  Edward 

Fuqua,  Joseph,  1819 Buckingham 

Gamble,  Hamilton  R,  1812 -Winchester 

Gannt,  John,  1815 Albemarle 

Garden,  Thomas  J.,  1810 Charlotte 

Garland,  Addison,  1824 Nelson 

Garland,  Hugh  A.,  1825,  A.  B Nelson 

Garland,  John,  1811 Albemarle 

Garland,  Morris  H.,  1824 Lynchburg 

Garland,  Preston  H. ,  1820 

Garland,  Richard,  1825 Goochland 

(Univ.  of  Virginia,  1826;  M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1830) 

Gay,  Abner  W.,  1822 North  Carolina 

Gibson,  Andrew,  1811 _ 

Giles,  Thomas  T.,  1824,  A.  B Amelia 

Gilliam,  Albert  M.,  1823 Lynchburg 

Gilliam,  Glover  D.,  1818 Buckingham 

Gilliam,  John,  1813 

Gilliam,  Jonathan  P.,  1818 Lynchburg 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1824) 

Glenn,  Archibald  D.,  1825 Halifax 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825-26) 

Glenn,  James,  1823 Halifax 

Goode,  Edward  P.,  1823 Charlotte 

Gordon,  Harrington,  1817 Botetourt 

Gordon,  John  N.,  1818 Orange 

Green,  Nathaniel,  1812 Culpeper 

Guerrant,  Peter,  1816 Goochland 

Hales,  Peter,  1815 Buckingham 

Hall,  John,  1823 Staunton 

Hamlett,  James  H.,  1824 Campbell 

Hammersley,  William,  1823 Campbell 

Hamlin,  William,  1818 _ Charlotte 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1823) 


309 


Hamner,  James  G.,  1819,  (A.  B.) Albemarle 

Hamner,  Thomas  L.,  1826 Charlotte 

Hamner,  William,  1820 Albemarle 

Hargrove,  George  Y.,  1807 ^ 

Harris,  B.  W.,  1823 Halifax 

Harris,  Egbert,  1811...- Powhatan 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1810) 

Harris,  Henry,  1805 , ,, 

Harris,  George  W.,  1821 Goochland 

Harris,  James  B.,  1809 Nottoway 

Harris,  John  P.  Banister,  1822 Powhatan 

Harris,  Josiah,  1820,  A.  B South  Carolina 

Harrison,  J.  B.,  1821,  A.  B Lynchburg 

Harrison,  Robert  Jordan,  1818 Lynchburg 

Hart,  Andrew,  1826,  A.  B Albemarle 

Harvey,  John  M.,  1823 Botetourt 

Haskins,  Edward,  1824 _ Brunswick 

Haskins,  James,  1824 Brunswick 

( ?)  Hatch,  Benjamin,  1817 

Hay,  John,  1822 Wythe 

Hay,  William,  1822 Wythe 

Henry,  Edmund  Winston,  1810 Charlotte 

Henry,  John,  1813 Charlotte 

Henry,  Lafayette,  1802 - Charlotte 

Henry,  Nathaniel,  1806 Charlotte 

Henry,  Patrick,  1800 Charlotte 

Henry,  Spotswood,  1804 Charlotte 

(The  above  six  entries  are  sons  of  Patrick  Henry) 

Hines,  George  E.,  1817 Isle  of  Wight 

(William  and  Mary,  1821) 

Hobson,  Samuel,  1801 Cumberland 

Hoge,  John  B.,  1808 Prince  Edward 

Hoge,  Moses  :  see  1807 

Hoge,  Samuel  D.,  1810 Prince  Edward 

Hoge,  Thomas  P.,  1815 Prince  Edward 

Hoggatt,  Abram  Sandifer,  1818 Tennessee 


310 


Holcombe,  Thomas  A.,  1800 Prince  Edward 

Hooper,  R.  W.,  1826 

(MS.  entry  Catalogue,  1825) 

HoUGHTELING,  JAMES,  1820 

(The  Rev.  James  B.  Houghteling  died  at  West  Troy,  N.  Y., 
1857,  setat.  59) 

Howard,  Nathaniel  P.,  1828 Richmond 

Howe,  Norval  D.,  1825 Athens,  Ohio 

Hubard,  Edmund  W.,  1825 Buckingham 

Hucheson,  John  C .,  1813 

Hudson,  Thomas  D.,  1822 Montgomery 

Hudson,  William,  1823 Prince  Edward 

(and  then  Madison,  Alabama) 

Hughes,  Jesse,  1811 

Hunt,  James  W.,  1810 Charlotte 

Hunt,  Thomas  P.,  1813 Prince  Edward 

Hunter,  Andrew,  1822 Berkeley 

Hunter,  David,  1811 Berkeley 

Hunter,  J. ,  1823 Princess  Anne 

Hurt,  John  M.,  1802 

(?)  Hurt,  John  W.,  1809 

Hutcheson,  Benjamin  A.,  1816 

Irby,  William,  1826 Nottoway 

Irvine,  Edmund,  1817 Bedford 

Irvine,  James,  1828,  A.  B Bedford 

Irvine,  John  (R  ?)  1817 Bedford 

Irvine,  Robert,  1825 „ Bedford 

Irvine,  Samuel  R.,  1823 Lynchburg 

Irving,  Charles  Robert,  1825 Buckingham 

(Listed  from  Cumberland  on  1824  Catalogue) 

Irving,  Paulus  Aemilius,  1810 Buckingham 

Jackson,  Matthew  W.,  1823 Charlotte 

Jackson,  Rowlett,  1818 Charlotte 

Jennings,  Robert,  1826 Halifax 

James,  Herbert,  1824 Cumberland 

Johns,  A.  B.,  1819 Buckingham 

Johnson,  George  W.,  1825 Chesterfield 

Johnston,  Alexander,  1823 Cumberland 


311 


Johnston,  Charles  C,  1810 Washington 

Johnston,  Cyrus,  1821,  A.  B North  Carolina 

(?)  Johnston,  John  W.,  1811 Washington 

Johnston,  Peter  C,  1810 -Washington 

Jones,  Alexander,  1812 Nottoway 

Jones,  Benjamin,  1804 

Jones,  Buckner,  1809 Buckingham 

Jones,  David  C,  1821 _ Campbell 

Jones,  Edward  M.,  1808 Nottoway 

Jones,  E verard  S . ,  1814 

Jones,  Francis  F. ,  1826 Nottoway 

Jones,  James,  1809 Buckingham 

Jones,  John,  1813 

Jones,  John  J.,  1817 Buckingham 

Jones,  Marshall,  1825,  A.  B Frederick 

Jones,  Mumford,  1813 _ 

Jones,  Patrick,  1808 Nottoway 

Jones,  Richard,  1809 Nottoway 

(Note  Richard  Jones,  House  of  Delegates,  1816,  Nottoway) 

Jones,  Rowland,  1812 Nottoway 

Jones,  Walter,  1812 

Jones,  William,  1811 Nottoway 

Jones,  William  G.,  1826 Powhatan 

(University  of  Virginia,  1827) 

Keeling,  Thomas,  1823 Princess  Anne 

Kennon,  Charles  H.,  1810 North  Carolina 

Kilpatrick,  Abner  W.,  1813,  A.  B North  Carolina 

Kilpatrick,  Josiah  J.,  1812 ! North  Carolina 

Kilpatrick,  Rufus  H.,  1822 North  Carolina 

Kirkpatrick,  John,  1812 North  Carolina 

Lacy,  Drury,  1822,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Lacy,  James  H.,  1814 Prince  Edward 

Lacy,  William  S.,  1811,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Latham,  Robert,  1817 Lynchburg 

Leach,  James  H.  C,  1818 Stafford 

Leake,  Samuel  D.,  1803,  A.  B Albemarle 

Legrand,  Nash,  1814 Charlotte 


312 


Lewis,  E.  S.,  1813 _ „ 

Lewis,  Joseph  W. ,  1 809 

Lightfoot,  William,  1824 Charles  City 

Ligon,  Benjamin,  1816 .Prince  Edward 

Ligon,  Benjamin  H.,  1823 Prince  Edward 

Ligon,  James  D.,  1826,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Ligon,  John,  1816 Prince  E dward 

Ligon,  John  M.,  1823 Prince  Edward 

Ligon,  Thomas,  1806 _ 

Ligon,  Thomas  W.,  1830,  A.  B _ Prince  Edward 

Linn,  William,  1816 Halifax 

(M.  D.,  Phil.  Soc.  Cat.) 

Lockett,  P.  S.,  1805 Mecklenburg 

Lockett,  Samuel,  1800 Mecklenburg 

Lockett,  thomas,  1800 Mecklenburg 

Loving,  William  H.,  1821 „ Nelson 

Lumpkin,  Thomas  W.,  1807,  A.  B . Bedford 

McFarland,  James,  1814 ., Lunenburg 

(Note  James  McFarland,  House  of  Delegates,  1825,  Lunenburg) 

McFarland,  William  H.,  1816 Lunenburg 

McIver,  Colin,  1808 North  Carolina 

McKinley,  Midas,  1815 _ North  Carolina 

McKinney,  Daniel,  1810 Charlotte 

McNutt,  Samuel  H.,  1810 Augusta 

McPhail,  John  B.,  1825 Norfolk 

McRae,  Sherwin,  1822,  A.  B Manchester 

McRobert,  Archibald,  1812 ,. Prince  Edward 

( ?)  Macon,  Robert,  1819,  A.  B.  ( ?) Powhatan 

Massie,  Charles,  1824 Goochland 

Matthews,  George  H.,  1818 Cumberland 

Matthews,  William,  1805 ., Powhatan  ( ?) 

Mayo,  Edward,  1800... Powhatan 

Mayo,  Robert,  1800 Powhatan 

Meredith,  John  C,  1810 Buckingham 

(See  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  John  Meredith,  M.  D.,  1813; 
John  C.  Meredith,  M.  D.,  1832) 

Merchie,  Robert,  1805 _ Powhatan 

(Note  Robert  D.  Murchie,  Chesterfield,  William  and  Mary,  1808) 


313 


Metcalf,  Allen  D.,  1823 North  Carolina 

Mettauer,  John  P.,  1806 Prince  Edward 

Miller,  George  M.  Y.,  1816 Halifax 

Miller,  John  G.,  1811 Cumberland  (?) 

Miller,  Nathaniel  M[acon],  1811 Cumberland  ( ?) 

(Nat.  M.  Miller,  M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1818) 

Miller,  Thomas  C . ,  1822 Powhatan 

Minge,  David,  1823  and  1826 Charles  City 

Minge,  James  D.,  1827,  A.  B Charles  City 

Minor,  Raymond  R.,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Mitchell,  David  R.,  1824 T Bedford 

Mitchell,  George  G.,  1824 Louisa 

Mitchell,  Harvey,  1816 Amherst 

Mitchell,  William  D.,  1823 Richmond 

Montague,  Robert  V.,  1822 Powhatan 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1820) 

Moore,  John,  1800 Lunenburg 

Moore,  Thomas  J.,  1801 _ Lunenburg 

Moorman,  Nathaniel  S.5  1815 Campbell 

Morton,  John  A.,  1809 Charlotte 

(May  have  lived  in  Halifax,  died  1839) 

Morton,  John  Campbell,  1817 Prince  Edward 

Morton,  Samuel,  D.,  1813,  A.  B Charlotte 

Morton,  W.  J.,  1824 Bordeaux,  France 

Morton,  William  Quinn,  1812 Prince  Edward 

Morton,  William  S.,  1801 Prince  Edward 

Mosby,  Charles  L.,  1824 Powhatan 

Mosby,  Edward  C,  1809 Powhatan 

(William  and  Mary,  1811) 

Mosby,  Edward  C,  1822 Powhatan 

Mosby,  Littleberry  C,  1818 Powhatan 

Moseley,  John  C,  1809 Charlotte 

Moseley,  Robert  G.,  1813 Buckingham 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1816) 

Moseley,  Thomas,  1807 

Moseley,  William  A.,  1822 Prince  Edward 


314 


Murray,  Thomas,  1801 

Nash,  John  T.,  1801 Prince  Edward 

Nbblett,  Sterling,  1810 „ Lunenburg 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1810-1811) 

Newman,  James  B.,  1826 Orange 

Nicholas,  Robert  C,  1820 Buckingham 

Nimmo,  Joseph,  1818 Norfolk 

Oliver,  William  W.,  1821,  A.  B Mecklenburg 

(Overstreet,  John  Holcombe,  1801 '. Prince  Edward) 

Page,  Mann,  1811 Cumberland 

Page,  Nelson,  1821,  A.  B Cumberland 

Page,  Robert,  1825 Cumberland 

Page,  Thomas,  1825 Cumberland 

Page,  William  N.,  1822,  A.  B Cumberland 

Palmer,  Reuben  D.,  1809 Halifax 

Pannill,  Samuel,  1822 Campbell 

Pannill,  William,  1823 Pittsylvania 

Parham,  Richard  H.,  1825 Sussex 

Patillo,  Jesse  H.,  1815 Mecklenburg 

Patillo,  Robert  H.,  1819 Mecklenburg 

Patillo,  William  H.,  1814 Mecklenburg 

Patterson,  Samuel  H.,  1809 

Paxton,  James  W. ,  1811 Rockbridge 

(M.  D.,  Univ.   of  Pennsylvania,  1817,  Knoxville,  Tenn., 
cf.   Washington  and  Lee  Catalogue) 

Paxton,  John  D.,  1812 ; 

Payne,  Baldwin,  1813 Goochland 

Payne,  George  M.,  1812 Goochland 

( ?)  Payne,  John,  1811 

Payne,  Philip  D.,  1813 Goochland 

Pemberton,  Thomas  W.,  1825 Cumberland 

(University  of  Virginia,   1825-26) 

Penick,  Daniel  A.,  1821,  A.  B Cumberland 

Penick,  William,  1820 Cumberland  (?) 

Penn,  George,  1824 Nelson 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1827) 

Penn,  James,  1821 Nelson 

Perkins,  J.,  1823 ...Goochland 


315 


Perkinson,  Matthew  R. ,  1820 Amelia 

Perkinson,  Thomas  J.,  1815 _ Ameila 

(William  and  Mary,  1818) 

Perry,  William  H.,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Pettus,  Thomas  N.,  1815 Charlotte 

Peyton,  William  Madison,  1825 _ Augusta 

Pharr,  Dion  C,  1821 North  Carolina 

(Out  of  college  several  years,  graduating  in  1829) 

Pharr,  Henry  N.,  1819 North  Carolina 

Pharr,  Walter  S.,  1812,  A.  B North  Carolina 

Pleasants,  Hugh  R.,  1822 Goochland 

Pollard,  William  H.,  1822,  A.  B Hanover 

Porter,  George  N.  N.,  1826 Powhatan 

Powell,  Henry,  1813 _ Memphis,  Tennessee  (1850) 

Preston,  Charles  H.  C,  1825 Washington 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825-27) 

Preston,  John  Smith,  1824 Washington 

Preston,  William  B.,  1824,  A.  B Montgomery 

Price,  Alexander,  1825 Richmond 

Price,  Edwin,  1811 Prince  Edward 

Price,  Nathaniel  D.,  1825 _ Prince  Edward 

Price,  Richard,  1811 .._ Prince  Edward 

Price,  Robert  P.,  1822 Prince  Edward 

Price,  William,  1813 -. 

Pryor,  Theodoric,  1826,  A.  B Dinwiddle 

Quarles,  Garrett,  1813 Louisa 

Quarles,  James,  1813 

Ragland,  Clement,  1805 

Ragland,  George  L.,  1824 Halifax 

Raine,  Charles  A.,  1822 Charlotte 

Randolph,  James  Innes,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Randolph,  William,  1815 Prince  Edward  (?) 

Read,  Clement,  1805 

Read,  Clement,  1825 Charlotte 

Read,  Clement  C,  1816 _ Charlotte 

(f)  Read,  C.  L.,  1809 _ .' Tennessee  (1850) 

(M.  D.,  Phil.  Soc.  Cat.) 


316 


Read,  George  W.,  1826,  A.  B -....Charlotte 

Read,  Edwin  E.,  1828,  A.  B „ Charlotte 

(Entered  1824:  died  shortly  after  1828) 

( ? )  Read,  H.,  1816 

Read,  H.  L.,  1809 Tennessee  (1850) 

Read,  Isaac,  1810 Charlotte 

Read,  Isaac,  1825,  A.  B Charlotte 

Read,  John,  1805 _ 

Read,  Nicholas  E.,  1826,  A.  B Charlotte 

Read,  Samuel  V.,  1819 Charlotte 

Read,  Thomas  E.,  1816 Charlotte 

Read,  Thomas  E.,  1826,  A.  B Charlotte 

(Reid,  William  S.,  1807) „ „.._ 

Rice,  Benjamin  H.,  1803 Bedford 

Rice,  Blair,  1817 _ Charlotte  ( ? ) 

Rice,  Izard  B.,  1823 Charlotte 

Rice,  John  Holt  (see  1825) „ 

Rice,  Samuel  R.,  1816 Botetourt 

( ?)  Rice,  William,  1802 

Richardson,  George,  1811 Louisa 

Riddle,  John  A.,  1816 _ Richmond  (1850) 

Rives,  Alexander,  1825,  A.  B Nelson 

Rives,  Landon  C,  1806 Nelson 

Rives,  William  C,  1806 Nelson 

Roane,  Patrick  H.,  1809 Hanover 

Roy  all,  Francis,  1824 Amelia  ( ?) 

(MS.  entry,  Catalogue  1823) 

Royall,  John  B.,  1809 Halifax 

Roy  all,  John  G.,  1825,  A.  B Lynchburg 

Royall,  Joseph  Albert,  1815 Powhatan 

Russell,  Daniel  L.,  1825 Concord,  New  Hampshire 

Sandys,  Edwin,  1806 _ Lunenburg 

Saunders,  Albin  G.,  1818 Powhatan 

Scott,  Anderson  E.,  1823 _ Prince  Edward 

Scott,  Branch  O.,  1822 __ _ _ 

(Brother  of  Alex.  E.  Scott) 


317 


Scott,  George  C . ,  1 825 : Halifax 

Scott,  Francis  H.,  1823 Prince  Edward 

Scott,  Henry  E.,  1802 Prince  Edward 

Scott,  Henry  E.,  1816 Halifax  ( ?) 

Scott,  Henry  E.,  1823 _ Halifax 

(Note  Henry  E.  Scott,  House  of  Delegates,  1828,  Halifax) 

Scott,  John  Archer,  1824 ....Prince  Edward 

Scott,  William,  1806 Halifax 

Scott,  William  Campbell,  1827,  A.  B Powhatan 

Scott,  William  N.,  1811 Augusta 

Scruggs,  Edward  L.,  1821,  A.  B Cumberland 

Sea y,'  William  A.,  1814 Prince  Edward 

Shannon,  Andrew  A.,  1808,  A.  B 

Shelton,  N.,  1811 Albemarle 

Shelton,  Thomas,  1817 Goochland 

Shelton,  William,  1808 Louisa 

Silliman,  John,  1815 North  Carolina 

Sims,  John,  1801 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Simms,  William  D.,  1823 r Halifax 

Skillern,  George  B.,  1825 Botetourt 

Skinker,  Thomas,  1823 Fauquier 

Skip  with,  George  E.,  1822 Cumberland  or  Mecklenburg 

(MS.  entry,  Catalogue  1822) 

Smith,  Albert  G.,  1820 Lunenburg 

Smith,  Anthony,  1813 

Smith,  David,  1818..._ Lunenburg  ( ?) 

Smith,  James,  1808 Halifax  (Lunenburg?) 

Smith,  Eobert  F.  N.,  1801 Prince  Edward  ( ?) 

Smith,  Robert  P.,  1803 Prince  Edward  or  Cumberland 

Smith,  Samuel  S.,  1823 Lunenburg 

Smith,  Sterling,  1810 Henrico  ( ?) 

Smith,  William,  1804 Charlotte 

Spears,  James  G.,  1822,  A.  B North  Carolina 

(Speece,  Frederick  C,  1809.. _ Campbell) 

Speed,  John,  1805 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Stafford,  James  B.,  1819 North  Carolina 


318 


Stewart,  James,  1805 

Stewart,  William  K.,  1811.._ Alexandria  (1850) 

(Note  William  K.  Stewart,  Presbyterian  minister, 
Macomb,  Illinois,  1845) 

Stuart,  Gerard  B.,  1823 ._ Staunton 

Strange,  Robert,  1811 Petersburg 

Sullivan,  James,  1821 .....Danville 

Swann,  George  T.  H.,  1827,  A.  B Cumberland 

Sydnor,  William  B.,  1826 Hanover 

Tabb,  John  Y.,  1800 „ Amelia 

Talbot,  Merritt,  1815 Bedford  ( ?) 

Talbot,  R.  H.,  1815 „ Bedford  (?) 

Taylor,  Charles  T.,  1825 Botetourt 

(University  of  Virginia,  1826-27) 

Taylor,  John,  1812 

Taylor,  T[elemachus]  ,  1824 „ Mecklenburg 

Thomas,  Charles  L.,  1824 Albemarle 

(University  of  Virginia,  1827) 

Thomas,  N.  L.,  1822 Charlotte 

Thompson,  John  W. ,  1825 Dinwiddle 

(Note  John  W.  Thompson  of  Botetourt,  James  Eiver 
Canal  Director,  1846) 

Thomson,  James  W. ,  1807 _ 

Thornton,  Francis,  1815 Spottsylvania 

Thornton,  William,  1815 Cumberland 

Thweatt,  H.  C,  1821 Halifax 

Tinsley,  John  B.,  1823 Powhatan 

Tinsley,  William  B.,  1827 Hanover 

Tredway,  William,  1827,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Trent,  Alexander,  1804 Cumberland  ( ?) 

Trent,  Edward,  1810 „ Cumberland 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1813) 

Turnbull,  Robert  D.,  1823,  A.  B Brunswick 

Turnbull,  Robert  H.,  1823 Brunswick 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1827) 

Turner,  Jesse  H.,  1810,  A.  B ..Bedford 

Van  Lear,  John  A.,  1821,  A.  B __ Botetourt 


319 


Venable,  Abram  W.,  1815,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Henry,  1826 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  James  H.,  1822 Shelbyville,  Kentucky 

(Written  also  H.  J.  Venable) 

Venable,  Joseph  M.,  1810,  A.  B Charlotte 

Venable,  Nathaniel,  1 813 

Venable,  Nathaniel  E.,  1808,  A.  B., Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Paul  C,  1811,  A.  B ..Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Richard,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Samuel  L.,  1823,  A.  B Shelbyville,  Kentucky 

Venable,  Samuel  W.,  1815 Prince  Edward 

Venable,  Thomas,  1803,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Venable,  William  Henry,  1817 Prince  Edward 

Waddell,  Addison,  1804 Louisa 

Walker,  Benjamin  P.,  1826,  A.  B Buckingham 

Walker,  Elisha,  1806 

Walker,  James  M.,  1822 Buckingham 

Walker,  John  H.,  1823 Brunswick 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825-26) 

Walker,  William,  1806 

Wallace,  Gustavus  B.,  1822 Madison 

( ?)  Wallace,  Samuel,  1817 

Wallace,  Thomas,  1816 Petersburg  (?) 

(Note  Thomas  Wallace,  House  of  Delegates,  1841,  Petersburg) 

Wallis,  John  F.,  1811 North  Carolina  (?) 

Wallis,  William  B.  A.,  1817 North  Carolina 

Walthall,  Barrett,  1821 Prince  Edward  or  Amelia 

Walton,  Robert,  1814 Charlotte  ( ?) 

Walton,  William  C,  1815,  A.  B Hanover 

Ward,  Albert  G.,  1824 Nashville,  Tennessee 

(University  of  Virginia,  1825,  died  1825) 

Ward,  John  T.,  1822 Nottoway 

Ward,  Rowland,  1810 _ Nottoway 

Ward,  Thomas  T.,  1824 Nottoway 

Ware,  Robert,  1811 _ _ _. Amherst  C  ? ) 

Warwick,  H.  D . ,  1824 _ _ Lynchburg 


320 


Watkins,  Augustus,  1811 :.Buekingham 

Watkins,  Benjamin,  1807 Chesterfield 

(Note  Benjamin  H.  Watkins,  Phil.  Soc.  Minutes,  1809) 

Watkins,  Henry  N.,  1807,  A.  B .Prince  Edward 

Watkins,  Joel,  1824 Charlotte 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  of  Pennsylvania,  1827) 

Watkins,  Joseph,  1802 Goochland 

(?)  Watkins,  Joseph  S.,  1809 Goochland 

(Note  Joseph  S.  Watkins,  Washington  and  Lee,   1806; 
House  of  Delegates,  Goochland,  1820-1839) 

Watkins,  Miles  S.,  1807 Chesterfield 

(M.  D.,  Univ.  Pennsylvania,  1816) 

Watkins,  S.  V.,  1813 Prince  Edward  (?) 

(Note  Samuel  V.  Watkins,  M.  D.,  Univ.  Pennsylvania,  1818) 

Watkins,  Samuel  V.,  1824,  A.  B Charlotte 

Watkins,  Thomas  E .,  1813 Charlotte 

Watkins,  William  J.,  1825,  A.  B Charlotte 

Watt,  John  Sinclair,  1826,  A.  B Richmond 

Watts,  Arthur,  1825 Bedford 

Watts,  William,  1819 Botetourt  ( ?) 

Webber,  Richard,  1815 Cumberland 

West,  ( ?)  John,  1806 , Campbell 

Wharey,  James,  1818 North  Carolina 

White,  Isaac  N.,  1823 Staunton 

(Washington  and  Lee,  1824) 


White,  William  S.,  1824,  A.  B Hanover 

Whitlocke,  Achilles,  1823 _ Charlotte 

Whittle,  James  M. ,  1825 Mecklenburg 

Wickham,  James,  1817 Richmond 

Wilkinson,  Richard,  1802 

Willcox  John  P.,  1826 Prince  George 

Willson,  James  C,  1808,  A.  B Augusta 

Williams,  James  Philip,  1823 Richmond 

Williams,  Peter,  1825 Lunenburg 

Wilson,  Benjamin  F.,  1827_ Prince  Edward 

('M.  D.,  died  in  Arkansas' — Hooper) 


321 


Wilson,  Daniel  A.,  1808 Cumberland 

Wilson,  John  Willis,  1813,  A.  B Cumberland 

Winston,  W.  C,  1824,. New  Kent 

Withers,  Thomas,  1824 Dinwiddie 

Womack,  David  F.,  1823 Prince  Edward 

Womack,  James  W7.,  1806,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

Womack,  John  P.,  1825 Prince  Edward 

Womack,  Samuel  V.,  1828,  A.  B Prince  Edward 

('Died  Louisville,  Ky.,  1880' — Hooper.     Was  conducting  an 

academy  at  Shelby ville,  Ky.,  around  1850,  at  which 

William  Preston  Johnston  was  a  pupil.) 

Worth,  Lewis  J.,  1818 Richmond 

(Wood,  James  D.,  1812 Prince  Edward) 

Woods,  William,  1824 Nelson 

Woodson,  Archibald,  1813 '. '. 

Woodson,  Charles,  1812 Missouri  ( 1850) 

Woodson,  George,  1812 Hanover  (1850) 

Woodson,  John  Pleasants,  1812 Hanover  (1850) 

(?)  Woodson,  John  S.,  1816 Goochland  (1850) 

( ?)  Woodson,  Richard,  1811 

Woodson,  Robert,  1812 

Woodson,  Tarlton,  1812 Hanover  (1850) 

Woodson,  Thomas  J.,  1817 '. 

Woodward,  William,  1824 ...Norfolk 

Wright,  George,  1814 Prince  Edward 

Wyche,  John  J.,  1823 Brunswick 

Wynne,  Thomas  J.,  1813 Lunenburg  ( ?) 

Yuille,  A.,  1823 Halifax  (?)  Nottoway  (?) 

(MS.  entry,  Cat,  1822) 


J 


This  house  (called  the  ''Old  President's  House")  built  by  Mr.  Cush- 
ing  about  1833,  was  the  link  between  the  Old  College  and  the  New 
College.  Bricks  of  the  Old  College  are  supposed  to  have  gone  into  this 
house,  and  the  Old  College  may  have  looked  something  like  this.  This 
is  a  rear  view. 


mmmwummm 

JUL  7    1022 


